CHAPTER EIGHT
The four ways that show the validity of the foretold about him, and its refusal by the Jews and the Nazarenes out of haughtiness.
The news and the foretold about him (peace be upon him) mentioned in the former Books are recognized through several ways. One of them is what we have already discussed ; which is only a little out of a huge body of information. The second is his (peace be upon him ) declaration to them that he is mentioned in their Books, that they were promised he will be sent to them, that the former prophets foretokerted his emergence , and that he (peace be upon him ) protested against them through these evidences. Had these facts been non-existent at all, it would have been tempting for them to belie him and create an atmosphere of distaste and uncertainty to his followers
contesting his call (as a prophet ). But the events testify to the contrary. The third, is the fact that these two communities (the Jews and the Nazarenes ) do acknowledge that the older Books foretokened the emergence of a great prophet who will be sent out in the end of time , and stated his attributes as such-and-such . This is agreed upon by all: Muslims, Jews, and Nazarenes. As for the Muslims, when he emerged, they believed in his message and knew that his message is the Truth from their Lord . As for the Jews, their scholars knew that he is the promised prophet, and they were certain that this promised prophet is Muhammad bin Abdullah (peace be upon him). Some of them followed him, others repudiated his prophethood and said to his followers that the promised prophet had not emerged yet. As for the Nazarenes, they attributed all the foretokens of the Torah and the prophecies that followed afterwards to the coming of the Messiah . There is no doubt that some of these foretokens are a clear description of the Messiah, some are possibly descriptions; but there are others that can in on way be attributed to him (the Messiah) . As for the foretokens attributed to the Messiah (about prophet-to-come) they took them all to be applicable to the Disciples, and when a set of attributes failed to agree with a corresponding set they had, they either altered it, swept it aside, or pretended they did not understand its meaning . Fourthly, those among them who embraced Islam testify to these foretokens and that they are clearly mentioned in their Books. The Muslims received the accounts of these foretokens from the genuine converts to Islam among them, and these converts were certain of the validity and the correctness of the messages relayed; because, in spite of the fact that those people were from different times and countries, and spoke different tongues, and although they were many, all of these accounts agree. This provides the irrevocable proof of their truthfulness even if the people of the Book refused to accept it. How the case would be then when they all testify to the foretoken and do not reject it; but
instead, they distort its interpretation and swindle its meaning!?.
Everyone of the four above-mentioned ways is enough a proof to the truthfulness of these foretokens. Moreover – and as we have mentioned before- his (peace be upon him) straightforwardness in telling his companions as well as his foes that he is mentioned in their Books with his name and attribute, and that they know him as they know their children, and his repetition to them time and time again of the same issue in every gathering, and showing them the evidences, and his reprimands to them and his call upon them to testify the truth , all are some of the strongest and irrefutable proofs of his
prophethood. These proofs are further confirmed from two perspectives. First , through the conclusive evidence of his truthfulness, and second, through his unabated call upon them to believe in him . Had this evidence not been there, this would have been one of the strongest reasons for them to belie him (that no such a prophet has ever been foretold to come) and to reject him.
The occurrence of alterations in the Torah and the calumny of the Jews against the prophets. seventy Rabbis anonymously agreed to change thirteen letters in the Torah.
These methods (of alterations) are also adopted by those who support them in their claim that they did not alter the words of the Torah or the Bible in anything at all. Some of the Muslim theorists fell in their traps without giving themselves the benefit of the doubt and inspecting their denial to these alterations. Another group alleges that they have altered and corrupted many words of both Books, and that even though their intentions in doing so are vastly different from their intentions in altering the foretoken about the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) . However, because of the multitude of the foretokens, they could not conceal or alter them all. That which they failed to conceal or alter exposed them in the open. How could the people who angered God the murderers of the prophets, the accusers of the prophets with the most hideous sins, be
acquitted from concealing the traits of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him ) and his description?. They have repudiated the prophethood of the Messiah and accused him and his mother of hideous sins in spite of the fact that his traits and foretoken about his coming are present in their Books! . in spite of that, they adamantly backed each other in rejecting his prophethood and in denying the foretoken of the former prophets about him, although the Messiah did not inflict on them what Muhammad (peace be upon him) did of killing, leading them into captivity, taking money from them as bounties of war, destroying their lands and evicting them from them. How could this nation withhold from conspiring in concealing his traits and description, and in altering them in their Books?!. In more than one place in His Book (the Qur’an) , God reprimanded them and put His curse upon them . What is surprising is that both the Jews and the Nazarenes acknowledge the fact that during the span of the
kingdom of lsrael, the Torah was kept under the sole guardianship of al-Haruni : the rabbi the highest in rank . The Jews admit that the seventy rabbis unanimously agreed to alter thirteen letters of the Torah. This alteration took place after the coming of the Messiah, during the reigns of the emperors under whom they lived subjugated and where they had nothing more to lose after they had lost their kingdom . He who dares to alter one single letter from the Books of God cannot be trusted not to alter some more . Again, the Jews admit that the Samaritans did alter some passages in the Torah quite obviously, and that they deleted some and added on others. The Samaritans accuse the Jews of the same thing. As for the version of the Bible in the hands of the Nazarenes, we have explained previously that it is made up of four different books (gospels) written by four men : Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. As such, how could they be exempted from alterations and distortions!?. Inspite of these changes, God diverted their attention from altering the foretokens about the coming of Muhammad bin Abdullah (peace be upon him), and from deleting them even when they concealed the news about him from his followers and from the ignorant people among them.
The version of the Torah in their hands contains alterations and distortions and attributing to the prophets things that are inconceivable to have come from them (the prophets) , and the (genuine) Torah that God sent down upon Moses is absolved from
these shameful accounts . Their «Torah» recounts that Lot , the Messenger of God, left the city and lived in a mountain cave with his two daughters.
The youngest daughter said to her older sister:
«Our father has aged, let us sleep with him to carry his breed» .
The older sister slept with him followed by the younger one. The following night they slept with him another time, and they bore from him Moab and Amon.
Does it comply with the mission of a noble messenger and a prophet of God that God, praised be He, let this Messenger fall into such an incestuous and hideous sin towards the end of his living years, and furthermore declare it a memorable story narratable to one generation after the other!?. It also recounts that God revealed Himself to Moses in person on the Mount of Sinai, and after a long conversation He asked him to put his hand in his lap and take it out leprous-white like the snow. This account is similar to the first one; for God, praised be He, did not reveal Himself in person to Moses, but He bid him to put his hand in his bosom and told him that it will come out white with no harm, and this includes the absence of leprosy . It also recounts that Aaron here is the person who molded for them the calf from gold . This is another account of their additions or slanders, for Aaron is the name of the Samaritan who molded it, not Aaron the brother of Moses . It recounts that God said to Abraham:
«Slay your first born son Isaac ( Ishaq ) » and this is another addition and falsehood of theirs in altering the words of God. They reconcile the irreconcilable for the first born son to Abraham was Ishmael, where the birth of Isaac was foretokened after the incidence of God bidding him to slay his first born and where Abraham was an old man.
It also recounts that:
«The Lord saw that the misdeeds of the people on earth have increased, and He regretted having ever created them . He said : I shall remove the descendants of Adam that I have created on earth as well as all insects and the birds of the sky, for I regret having created 1them all .»
Sublime be He, High above the prevarication of the falsehoods tellers and the transgressors.
It also recounts that God, praised be He, Most Exalted, Most Sublime. wrestled with Jacob and Jacob threw Him on the ground!. It recounts that the prophet Judas son of Jacob married in his eldest son to a woman called Tamar, and that he (her husband) used to sodomize her. The Lord became angry at him and he caused him to die. Judas married his other son to her. He used to perform with her coitus interruptus , ejaculating on the floor knowing that if she became pregnant her first born would be named by his late brother’s name: a shameful attribution . God hated his deed and caused him to die. Judas bid her to return to her fathers house till his other son Shila
grows up and reaches puberty . Then Judas’ wife died . He returned home to shear his sheep . When Tamar knew, she dressed herself like a whore and sat on the side of the road leading to his house . When he passed by her, he took her for a whore and he was tempted . She requested her pay, he promised to give her a young billy- goat and entrusted her with his staff and ring meanwhile, and he committed fornication with her. She fell pregnant and bore a boy of whose descendants the prophet David was born. They made out of him a breed of fornication as they made out of the Messiah ! As if this was not enough transgression to them they attributed their fabrications to the Torah! They also made out of Lot’s sons the product of fornication and then attributed the lineage of David and others of their prophets to these two sons!.
As for their falsehood against God, His messengers, and His prophets, and for their pelting accusations to the Lord of the Worlds of the most heinous deeds, the accounts are many . One of them is that on the seventh day of the creation of the heavens and the earth, He rested . God, Most Exalted in Power, Most Majestic, sent down upon His messenger what reveals their deceitfulness:
“We created the heavens and the earth and all between them in Six Days, nor did any sense of weariness touch us” (Qaf: 38)
“God bath heard the taunt o f those who say: truly, God is indigent and we are rich! we shall certainly record their word and (their act) of slaying the prophets in defiance of right, and we shall say: Taste ye the penalty of the Scorching Fire “ (al-Imran: 181)
“The Jews say: God’s hand is tied up. But their hands tied up and be they accursed for the (blasphemy) they uttert” (al-Ma’idah: 64)
“They (also) said: God took our promise not to believe in an apostle unless he showed us a sacrifice consumed by fire (from heaven). Say: There came to you apostles before me, with clear Signs and even with what ye ask for: why then did ye slay them, if ye speak the truth?” (al-Imran: 183)
“And they say: The Fire shall not touch us but for a few numbered days; Say: Have ye taken a promise from God, for He never breaks His promise? Or is it that ye say of God what ye do not know? “ (al-Baqarah: 80)
Add to this their saying that God was struck by regret and remorse to have caused the Flood to the extent that His eyes became sore and the angels solaced Him!. And their saying – as mentioned previously- that He regretted creating the sons of Adam. They entered these falsehoods into the text of the Torah. And their saying that Lot committed incest with his two daughters who b o th conceived from him two boys out of whose breed a group of prophets descended. And their saying in some of their pleas in prayer:
«Watch out how long you sleep, O Lord ! . Wake up from your slumber.»
They had the audacity to address their inner thoughts to the Lord of the Worlds with such an insolent supplication as if they were trading their arrogance with Him to subdue to them and protect Himself through them. As if they were making Him aware that He chose slumber for Himself and his beloved people, and that He needs to be shaken up with such an imploration and infamous declaration. After embracing Islam, one of their notable men said:
«When one of them recites these words in prayer, the hair on his skin is raised, and he would not entertain the slightest doubt that his words will fall on God’s hearing with a great effect enough to touch Him from within , move Him, shake Him, and poke Him to respond.»
In the version of the Torah they have at hand , we find the following story:
«Moses climbed the mountain with the chieftains of his people and saw God overtly, and under His feet they saw a chair that looked like a glass.»
This is another account of their falsehoods against God and the Torah . The version of the Torah they follow also recounts that:
«When God, praised be He, saw the corruption of Noah’s people and their atrocious evil doing , He regretted to have created mankind»
«And God regretted He made Samuel the king of Israel» and
«When Noah came out from the ship, he built a house as an altar, and offered sacrifices. The Lord smelled the aroma of the cooked fat; He said to Himself:
«I shall not curse the earth again because of its people, for the taste of the people is instinctively bad by nature , and I shall not destroy all the animals as I did before.»
The reasons for the alterations of the Torah:
Some of their scholars who are well established in knowledge, and whom God has guided to embrace Islam, said:
«We know that these falsehoods are not a part of the Torah that was sent down upon Moses, and we also do not say that the Jews had deliberately attempted the alterations and the corruption of the Scripture, for the knowledgeable men among them and their rabbis know that the version of the Torah in their hands now is not exactly the same Torah that was sent down upon Moses bin Imran. They know that Moses safeguarded and hid the Torah away from the people of lsrael, and that he did not spread it among them out of fear that they may differ in its interpretation after his death . And as a result , they may split apart into different sects. Instead , Moses entrusted it to his clan , to the sons of Levi . And the proof to that is found in the Torah itself in his saying which is translated as follows:
“And Moses wrote this Torah and entrusted it to the leaders of the sons of Levi ” , and the sons o f Aaron were the judges and the rulers of the Jews because the imamate (leadership) and the service of the sacrifices offerings and the guardianship of the Holy House were their privilege. Moses did not disclose to the people of Israel more than half a verse of the Torah in which God said to Moses:
“Let this verse be a witness on the people of Israel, and let this verse not to be forgotten from the mouths of their children.”
As for the rest of the Torah, Moses entrusted it to the sons of Aaron to stay within the family, and he safeguarded it away from all others. But Nebuchadnezzar killed them and killed those of the same blood lineage. He burnt their temple when he conquered Jerusalem, and the Torah was not kept being recited regularly on their tongues, but every descendant of Aaron used to memorize one chapter. When Ozair realized that his people ‘ s temple was burnt, their dominion swept away, their unity broken, and their Book neglected; from the scripts he kept, and from the chapters memorized by the rabbis, he collected the material he used to concoct the current version of the Torah . Therefrom , they exaggerated in glorifying Ozair (Azeez) to a great extent, and they said about him what God mentioned in His Book about them . They alleged that light on earth appears on his tomb in the fertile oases of iraq . . »
He continued saying that this points out to the fact that the person who put these chapters together in the current version of the Torah is a man ignorant of the qualities of the Supreme Lord, praised be He, and in what can be attributed to the Lord , praised be He, and what cannot. For this reason he attributed to the Lord, praised be He, qualities that contradict the Supreme Status of His Holy Being and His Veneration. This man is known to the Jews and the Nazarenes as Elazar. Some people think that he is the one whose mention is made in the following verse of the Qur’an:
“Or (take) the similitude of one who passed by a hamlet, all in ruins to its roofs . He said: Oh! how shall God bring it (ever) to life, after (this) its death? But God caused him to die for a hundred years, then raised him up again”(al-Baqarah: 259)
And that he is a prophet ; but there is no evidence to these allegations, and one should make sure inclusively and exclusively. If this man was a prophet and his name was Ozair, then this name would conform with the name of Elzar the Torah scribe.
We, and every man endowed with reason ultimately stress that the Torah that God sent down upon Moses, His prophet to whom the spoke, is totally clean of these fabrications, improbabilities and trifles, we also ultimately stress that the prayers of Moses and the people of Israel are absolved from what the current version contains of prayers that the Jews of these days recite. In the first ten days of the first month each year, they say in their prayer what can be conveyed through translation as:
«O our Father! ordain all the people of the earth, every single one of them , to say : The Lord , the God of Israel, is the king, and His kingdom over-rules all.»
In it they also say:
«The kingdom will be to God, and on that Day God will be one and His name will be One.»
They mean that the state of His kingdom and His Oneness will not manifest itself unless the State is rendered to them, and that as long as the State is in the hand of others, He, Most Sublime, will have no due mention among the nations : His Oneness will be uncertain, and His kinghood controversial . It is well known and without any shadow of doubt that Moses and the Lord of Moses are absolved from such a prayer and from having such trifles attributed to them.
By Imam Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziah
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