The Debate between the Might and the Truth within a Quranist Vision (16):

The Israelites and the Muhammadans between Favor and Disfavor

Published in January 5, 2018

Translated by: Ahmed Fathy

Introduction:

1- Among the lessons drawn from the Quranic stories of the Israelites is their being tested with adversity and prosperity, and some of them passed the test successfully and many of them failed. The same failure applies to the Muhammadans who have abandoned the Quran while claiming to believe in it, as they have distorted and twisted its meanings by the so-called hadiths (devilish revelations or narratives), fiqh rules, interpretation, and Naskh (i.e., verses supplanted and replaced by hadiths). Such a grave sin has been committed by the misguided ones among the People of the Book with their Scriptures.    

2- The similarity between the Muhammadans and the misguided ones among the People of the Book makes them identical peoples. Both of them deny the Quran, of course, either explicitly or within an implied manner in practice. There is another similarity between the believers among the guided ones among the People of the Book and the Quran-believing persons (i.e., the Quranists).   

3- We tackle here one feature of this similarity and identical nature; i.e., the tests experienced by both the Israelites and the Muhammadans between favor and disfavor.

Firstly: the test of being favored:

1- Favoring the Israelites over all other people comes in the words of Moses when he preached his people when they asked him to carve a god to them to be worshipped alongside with God: "He said, "Shall I seek for you a god other than God, when He has favored you over all other people?" " (7:140). Being favored is mentioned once again by Moses when he urged them to enter into the Promised Land: "When Moses said to his people, "O my people, remember God's bounties upon you, when He placed prophets among you, and made you kings, and gave you what He never gave any other people."" (5:20). This verse refers to their being successors momentarily in the land of Egypt, and this status of being favored was their test imposed on them by the Lord God, as the succession in the land is linked directly to this test in this verse about the promise of succession when the Israelites complained to Moses about Pharaoh's severe persecution inflicted on them: "...Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy, and make you successors in the land; then He will see how you behave." (7:129). 

2- Favoring the Israelites over all other nations is expressed explicitly within the Quranic Chapter Two; God says the following to the Israelites within direct address: "O Israelites! Remember My favor which I bestowed upon you, and that I favored you over all nations. And beware of a Day when no soul will avail another in the least, nor will any intercession be accepted on its behalf, nor will any ransom be taken from it, nor will they be helped." (2:47-48); "O Israelites! Remember My bounty which I bestowed upon you, and that I have favored you over all people. And beware of a Day when no soul will avail another soul in any way, and no ransom will be accepted from it, and no intercession will benefit it, and they will not be helped." (2:122-123). Thus, being favored is linked to the bounties bestowed on them by God, and denying such bounties and being ungrateful for them within disbelief means that the Israelites lost their being favored and they were punished by torment in this life within disfavor. The myth of intercession is refuted twice in 2:47-48 & 2:122-123, as God has preached the Israelites by reminding them of the facts of the Last Day; yet, the misguided ones among the Israelites invented the myth of getting out of Hell through intercession, and God refutes this falsehood in these verses: "And they say, "The Fire will not touch us except for a number of days." Say, "Have you received a promise from God-God never breaks His promise-or are you saying about God what you do not know?" Indeed, whoever commits misdeeds, and becomes besieged by his sins - these are the dwellers of the Fire, wherein they will dwell forever. As for those who believe and do righteous deeds-these are the inhabitants of Paradise, wherein they will dwell forever." (2:80-82); "That is because they said, "The Fire will not touch us except for a limited number of days." They have been misled in their religion by the lies they fabricated. How about when We gather them for a Day in which there is no doubt, and each soul will be paid in full for what it has earned, and they will not be wronged?" (3:24-25). Likewise, the Muhammadans have invented hadiths of intercession and getting out of Hell, when we have refuted and criticized such misguiding hadiths in our book titled "Would Disobedient Muslims Get out of Hell to Enter into Paradise?", we have been incarcerated in 1987 and this book has been confiscated. This is because the myth of intercession invented by the misguided ones of the Israelites has become part of the religions of the Muhammadans, though God refutes this myth in the Quran.   

3- Within a similar favoring of the Israelites, God says the following about favoring Quran-believing people: "You are the best community that ever emerged for humanity: you advocate what is moral, and forbid what is immoral, and believe in God..." (3:110). Again, this favor is linked to monotheistic belief in God resulting in good deeds within an elevated society with high moralistic level and without deifying mortals (especially prophets and rulers). The rest of 3:110 mentions the People of the Book whose vast majority did not adhere to conditions of being favored and they became misguided disobedient transgressors: "...Had the People of the Book believed, it would have been better for them. Among them are the believers, but most of them are sinners." (3:110). Those misguided ones among the People of the Book could not harm peaceful believers except through verbal abuse, and when they attacked the peaceful believers militarily, they were defeated: "They will do you no harm, beyond insulting you. And if they fight you, they will turn around and flee, then they will not be helped. They shall be humiliated wherever they are encountered, except through a rope from God, and a rope from the people; and they incurred wrath from God, and were stricken with misery. That is because they rejected God's Verses, and killed the prophets unjustly. That is because they disobeyed and committed aggression." (3:111-112). The verses 3:113-115 mentions the pious ones among the People of the Book. The Muhammadans failed in the test of being favored by the Lord God; they have rejected the Quran, and they are now the worst community that ever emerged for humanity; they are now the axis of evil worldwide.

4- The Israelites with Moses witnessed the miracles of his staff and saw how Pharaoh and his troops drowned: "And recall that We parted the sea for you, so We saved you, and We drowned the people of Pharaoh as you looked on." (2:50). They saw how the misguided ones among them were struck by the Lord God: "And recall that you said, "O Moses, we will not believe to you unless we see God plainly." Thereupon the thunderbolt struck you, as you looked on." (2:55). The Israelites saw the staff of Moses bringing water wells to them, clouds protecting them against the hot sun, and quail and manna provided for their nourishment. Seventy Israelite men saw Mount Al-Tur suspended over their heads during the event of the covenant. Within such events, the belief of the truthful believers among them increased as they adhered to the Truth as the source of guidance and judgment among people. The misguided disbelievers among the Israelites included those who took a golden calf as a deity, those who demanded from Moses to carve a god for them, those who consumed ill-gotten money, those who practiced usury, those who committed aggressions and injustices, and those who murdered some prophets. In each case, some of them repented and God accepted their repentance and pardoned them. 

Secondly: the test of being disfavored:

1- Within a coastal town that might have been overlooking the Red Sea or the Mediterranean Sea, some among the Israelites transgressed during the Sabbath, as God has forbidden them, within the covenant, to work on that day: "...and We said to them, "Do not violate the Sabbath", and We received from them a solemn pledge." (4:154). This violation of the Sabbath resulted in describing the aggressors as apes and swines. This story has been known in Arabia during the time of the Meccan revelation of the Quran, as God has said the following to Muhammad: "Ask them about the town by the sea..." (7:163). Those sinners among the Israelites violated the Sabbath as they failed the test; fish was plenty on Saturdays and scarce for the rest of the week, and as per the covenant, they must not work during the Sabbath. They decided to catch fish on Saturday and thus violated God's command: "...when they violated the Sabbath. When they observed the Sabbath, their fish would come to them abundantly. But when they violated the Sabbath, their fish would not come to them. Thus We tested them because they sinfully disobeyed." (7:163). This applies to the vast majority of the dwellers of this coastal town who were sinful, disobedient ones, and there were some pious ones who preached those sinners and felt despair: "And when a group of them said, "Why do you counsel a people whom God will annihilate, or punish with a severe torment?"..." (7:164), and those preachers who went on preaching their people while hoping that sinners would reform: "...They said, "As an excuse to your Lord, and so that they may become righteous."" (7:164). Those preachers of reform and righteousness were saved while the disobedient transgressors who violated the Sabbath were severely punished: "Then, when they neglected what they were reminded of, We saved those who prohibited evil, and We seized those who did wrong with a terrible torment, because of their sinfulness." (7:165). This severe punishment made them go to extremes of aggression and violation in arrogance, and God has cursed them: "Then, when they rebelled against the commands to refrain, We said to them, "Be despicable apes."" (7:166).   

2- The story of the violators of the Sabbath has remained the source of preaching and warning for the other generations of the Israelites and to those who settled in Arabia and witnessed Muhammad's lifetime and the descent/revelation of the Quran; God has preached the Israelites of Arabia by reminding them of this story in these two verses: "And you surely knew those of you who violated the Sabbath. We said to them, "Be despicable apes!" Thus We made it a deterrent for their generation, and for subsequent generations, and a lesson for the righteous." (2:65-66).

Thirdly: is the expression (apes and swines) used in the figurative sense or in the literal one?:

 The question is as follows: did those violators of the Sabbath among the sinning Israelites turn into real apes and swines? Or is it a figurative expression to indicate being disfavored and cursed? The Quranic context indicates that this is a figurative expression that indicates their being disfavored and cursed by God. Let us prove this in the points below.

1- This expression is linked to God's fury and His cursing them: "Say, "Shall I inform you of worse than that for retribution from God? He whom God has cursed, and with whom He became angry; and He turned some of them into apes, and swines, and Taghut worshipers. These are in a worse position, and further away from the Straight Path."" (5:60). Thus, the explanation of the meaning of God's fury and curse upon them is describing them as apes, swines, and Taghut worshipers. Of course, Taghut worshipers are NOT animals; they are cursed human beings. This means no sinners were turned into apes and swine literally.

2- Their being cursed is mentioned here briefly without details; this means that the description as apes ad swines is merely an expression of being cursed as sinners who deserved God's fury: "O you who were given the Book! Believe in what We sent down, confirming what you have, before We obliterate faces and turn them inside out, or curse them as We cursed the Sabbath-violators. The command of God is always done." (4:47).

3- Thus, those cursed sinners among the Israelites who are described as apes, swines, and Taghut worshipers were human beings and they were not turned into animals literally. This is proven in this verse about them: "Your Lord has announced that, He would send against them, until the Day of Resurrection, those who would inflict terrible torment upon them. Your Lord is swift in retribution, yet He is Forgiving and Merciful." (7:167). This means that sinners among them, in all eras, who follow the footsteps of their ancestors in disobedience will be punished by the Lord God in this world, but once they repent, God will pardon them. This test continues for the rest of days until the Last Day. Those sinners who have incurred God's wrath are disfavored by being described as apes, swines, and Taghut worshipers who are tormented in this life as cursed people for their sins and violations, but those who repent will be spared this torment.   

4- This is asserted by the fact that the discourse here is about human beings and NOT animals (i.e., not apes and swines), who are tested by adversity and prosperity and they include the good believers and the disobedient disbelievers: "And We scattered them into communities on earth. Some of them righteous, and some of them short of that. And We tested them with fortunes and misfortunes, so that they may return." (7:168).

5- The following verses tackle the Israelites but they apply to the misguided and misguiding Muhammadans as well, as they constitute a vast majority of those who claim to believe in the Quran. There are few real believers who adhere truly to the Quran, perform prayers, and call for reform using the Quranic Truth, and we, Dr. A. S. Mansour, sincerely hope to be among them: "They were succeeded by generations who inherited the Book and chose the materials of this world, saying, "We will be forgiven." And should similar materials come their way, they would again seize them. Did they not make a covenant to uphold the Book, and to not say about God except the Truth? Did they not study its contents? But the Home of the Hereafter is better for the pious ones; will you not understand? Those who adhere to the Book and perform prayers - We will not waste the reward of the reformers." (7:169-170). 

6- Within a direct address to the Israelites, God says the following in the Quran: "O Israelites! Remember My bounties which I bestowed upon you, and fulfill your pledge to Me, and I will fulfill My pledge to you, and fear Me.  And believe in what I revealed, confirming what is with you; and do not be the first to deny it; and do not exchange My Verses for a small price; and be conscious of Me in piety. And do not mix the Truth with falsehoods, and do not conceal the Truth while you know. And perform prayers, and practice regular charity, and kneel with those who kneel. Do you command people to virtuous conduct, and forget yourselves, even though you read the Book? Do you not understand? And seek help through patience and prayers. But it is difficult, except for the devout." (2:40-45).

7- The Muhammadans, who claim ostentatiously that they believe in the Quran while, in fact, they believe in fabricated devilish hadiths and narratives of falsehoods, are described by God in the Quran as worse than cattle; God has said the following to Muhammad: "Or do you assume that most of them hear or understand? They are just like cattle, but even more errant in their way." (25:44). God has vowed to curse those who conceal the Quranic Truth: "Those who suppress the proofs and the guidance We have revealed, after We have clarified them to humanity in the Book - those - God curses them, and the cursers curse them. Except those who repent, and reform, and proclaim. Those - I will accept their repentance. I am the Acceptor of Repentance, the Merciful." (2:159-160). Thus, the cursed, disobedient sinners among the Israelites are described as apes, swines, and Taghut worshipers, whereas the cursed, disobedient sinners among the Muhammadans and their imams/leaders are described as dogs in these verses: "Had We willed, We could have elevated him through them; but he clung to the ground, and followed his desires. His metaphor is that of a dog: if you chase it, it pants; and if you leave it alone, it pants. Such is the metaphor of the people who deny Our Verses. So tell the tale, so that they may ponder. Evil is the metaphor of the people who reject Our Verses and wrong themselves." (7:176-177).   

Lastly:

 The extremists among the Muhammadans love to verbally abuse the Israelites by describing them as the brood of (or descendants of) apes and swines; those Muhammadans tend to forget that (1) the Israelites include guided, believing, pious ones or leaders/imams of guidance, (2) all disobedient sinners in all eras and peoples/nations are cursed by God, and (3) the leaders/imams of misguidance among the Muhammadans (Al-Bokhary, Al-Shafei, Ibn Hanbal, etc.) who spread falsehoods and concealed the Quranic Truth, are cursed disobedient persons described in the Quran as dogs.