Children of Israel

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Handwoven carpet related to the events of the Israelites in the Sinai desert(Sinai Peninsula).

The Israelites or Children of Israel (Arabic: بنو إسرائيل) are the twelve children or peoples who were named after their father or grandfather Israel. The phrase is used Forty-one times in the Quran, in which God reminds them of His blessings and commands to the Israelites as well as His admonishments against them.

Because of famine in Canaan, Israel and his sons migrated to Egypt, where their descendants remained until Moses's time. At that point, they left Egypt due to the Pharaoh's injustice and oppression. When Prophet Moses (a) went to Mount Sinai and was absent for a while, the Israelites turned to worshiping the golden calf.

When Prophet Moses (a) and Joshua passed away, the age of Israelite judges began. They were not kings but just engaged in settling disputes. Years later, the age of Israelite kings started with Saul, and then David (a) and Solomon (a). After Solomon's death, his son took over the throne, but ten of the twelve Israelite tribes refused to obey him. Only Benjamin and Judah pledged their allegiance to him. They resided in a region called Judah in Jerusalem, hence the term "Judaism."

A temple known as Solomon's Temple was built for worship during Solomon's era. It was demolished several times due to disputes between Israelite tribes and the occupation of Jerusalem.

Terminology

"Israelite" literally means children of Israel or Jacob the Prophet (a). Still, it is more commonly used to refer to Jewish people[1] because of Jacob's title, Israel.[2] In Hebrew, the word Israel means chosen by God or God's servant.[3]

History

Jacob (Israel) and his sons migrated to Egypt because of a famine in Canaan.[4] Their descendants remained in Egypt until Moses's time when they fled the Pharaoh's territory under Moses's leadership and returned to Canaan. They wandered in the Sinai Peninsula for about forty years[5] until Joshua, Moses's successor could conquer Canaan.[6]

Since the Israelites had a scripture, particular religious rituals, and historical background, they were viewed by pre-Islamic Arabs as a civilized minority. Despite the Quranic culture in the early Islamic era, the Children of Israel were deemed as a rival entity.[7]

Israelite Judges

After Joshua (a), several figures known as judges led the Israelites. They were not kings; instead, they settled the disputes between the Israelites. The last Israelite judge was Samuel. After him, the age of Israelite kings began with Saul and then David (a) and Solomon (a).[8]

According to the Old Testament, when Solomon (a) passed away, his son took over the reign, but because of his injustice, ten out of the twelve Israelite tribes refused to obey him. The descendants of Judah and Benjamin just obeyed him in a small land called Judah, which includes Jerusalem. The name "Jew" is derived from the name of this city. The other ten tribes established an independent government called Israel under the leadership of one of Solomon's commanders.[9]

Solomon's Temple

A painting by famous French painter Gustave Dore of Cyrus, the conquest of Babylon and the liberation of Children of Israel.

Solomon's Temple was built by Solomon (a) within seven and a half years. It was built in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah.[10] When the Israelites were divided, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon demolished the temple, and the Israelites were taken to Babylon as prisoners.[11] After a while, Iran became more powerful and Cyrus conquered Babylon. He allowed the Israelites to return to their land. They reconstructed the temple, but soon there were disputes between them. Romans who felt threatened by the Israelite presence occupied Jerusalem in 70 AD and demolished Solomon's Temple for a second time. After that, the Israelites were dispersed in different regions.[12]

Children of Israel in the Quran

The term "Bani Isra'il" (Children of Israel) is used 41 times in the Quran.[13] The Quran often addresses Moses's followers with this phrase: Jacob's descendants after Moses (a).[14] The Quran talks about different themes concerning the Israelites, including the Israelite chiefs (naqib), God's blessings to the Israelites, His commands to them, and their reprimand.

Twelve Naqibs

Main article: Chieftains of Banu Israel

The Quran attributes twelve "naqibs" to the Israelites, which has been interpreted in different ways,[15] including:

  • Israelite chiefs[16]
  • Witnesses before whom the Israelites pledged allegiance to God or Moses (a)[17]
  •  Guarantees from whom God or Moses (a) received a pledge[18]
  •  Children of Jacob (Israel)[19]

God's blessings to the Israelites

The Quran describes the Israelites as being blessed by God in one way or another[20], including:

  • Being given judgment (discernment of good and bad), prophethood, and the scripture[21]
  • Enjoying pure livelihood[22]
  •  A cloud making a shadow to protect the Israelites from the desert’s heat[23]
  •  Superiority over everything else in the world[24]
  •  Rescue from the enemies[25]
  •  Having the best place for life[26]
  •  Showing divine miracles[27]
  •  Manna and quails being sent down to them[28]

God's commands to the Israelites

In the Quran, God issues commands to the Israelites in exchange for His blessings to them, including:

  • Keeping their promise[29]
  •  Being God-wary[30]
  •  Belief in the revelation[31]
  •  Not conflating the truth and falsehoods and not concealing the truth[32]
  •  Performing the prayer and paying the zakat (charity)[33]
  • Worshiping God, doing good to their parents, and helping orphans and those in need[34]
  •  Good words[35]
  • Avoidance of excess and extravagance[36]

Reprimanding the Israelites

The Israelites are reproached in several Quranic verses. The verses point to punishments such as curse, dark-heartedness, and disgrace in this world and the hereafter because of their sins,[37] including:

  • Going astray despite all the signs[38]
  • Disobedience of prophets[39]
  • Denial of Prophet Muhammad’s prophethood[40]
  •  Disconformity to the scripture[41]
  •  Extravagance[42]
  • Taking partners for God[43]
  •  Hurting and denying the prophets[44]
  •  Division and dispute despite God’s blessings[45]
  •  Corruption on the earth[46]
  •  Commanding others to do good deeds without doing so themselves[47]
  •  Worshiping the golden calf[48]
  •  Asking to see God[49]
  • Making excuses[50]
  • Acquisitiveness and snobbery[51]
  •  Shedding blood[52]
  •  Arrogance towards prophets[53]

Children of Israel in the Bible

While the term "Children of Israel" is used as a phrase for the first time in the Quran,[54] the Bible talks about children and descendants of Jacob.[55] In the Bible, the Israelites are mentioned as Israel's (Jacob's) descendants, a group of believers who are God's spiritual children, and the kingdom of Israel. Of these, the most common is the first notion.[56]

In the Old Testament, the story of the Israelites and their father Israel begins with the famine in Canaan, Jacob's migration to Egypt, and his meeting with Joseph.[57] It then accounts for their problems and several prophets among them.[58]

Israelite Prophets

According to some Shiite hadiths, there were six hundred Israelite prophets, the first being Moses (a) and the last being Jesus (a).[59] Of these, Moses (a) and Jesus (a) were Ulu l-'Azm; that is, those who brought a new religion revealed by God.[60] Other Israelite prophets include Jacob (a), Joseph (a), Joshua (a), Aaron (a), David (a), Solomon (a), Elijah (a), Elisha (a), Jonah (a), Uzair (a), and Zechariah (a).[61]

Pesach Holiday

According to the Old Testament, since Egyptian rulers oppressed the Israelites, Moses (a) gathered the Israelite leaders at God's command, asking them to return to Canaan to save their lives and enjoy its blessings. Moses (a) and his brother Aaron (a) went to Egypt, creating problems for the Pharaoh through the miracles they displayed, and thus he had to let the Israelites go. Jews celebrate the day as Pesach or Passover Holiday.[62]

Worshiping the Golden Calf

The story of calf worship by the Israelites appears in the Quran and the Bible. According to the Old Testament, it took a long time for Moses (a) to return from Mount Sinai. The Israelites went to Aaron (a) and asked him to make a god for them. They finally made a golden calf, which they began to worship. When Moses (a) returned, he was upset by seeing that they worshipped the calf. He broke the stone tablet in his hand and then worshipped God for forty days until he was again given the tablet.[63] The Quran narrates the story almost similarly, except that it does not attribute the making of the golden calf to Aaron (a), asserting that the calf was made by a person called Samiri.[64]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Ḥāshimī Rafsanjānī, Farhang-i Qurʾān, vol. 6, p. 294.
  2. ↑ Mihrwash, "Banī ʾIsrāʾīl", vol. 12, p. 629.
  3. ↑ Dihkhudā, ''Lughatnāma''.vol. 2, p. 2246.
  4. ↑ Pazhūhishkada-yi Tahqīqāt-i Islāmī. Farhang-i shīʿa, p. 262.
  5. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 83.
  6. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 83.
  7. ↑ Mihrwash, Banī ʾIsrāʾīl, vol. 12, p. 629.
  8. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 91-92.
  9. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 95.
  10. ↑ Ḥasanzāda Āmulī, Durūs-i maʿrifat-i nafs, p. 615.
  11. ↑ Fayḍ al-Kāshānī, al-Aṣfā fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 409.
  12. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 83.
  13. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 55.
  14. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 58.
  15. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 58.
  16. ↑ Ṭūsī, Al-Tibyān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 3, p. 465.
  17. ↑ Ṭūsī, Al-Tibyān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 3, p. 465.
  18. ↑ Qummi Mashhadi, Tafsīr kanz al-daqāʾiq, vol. 4, p. 60.
  19. ↑ Ḥuwayzī, Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalayn, vol. 2, p. 87.
  20. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 58.
  21. ↑ Qurʾān 45:16.
  22. ↑ Qurʾān 45:16.
  23. ↑ Qurʾān 2:57.
  24. ↑ Qurʾān 2:122.
  25. ↑ Qurʾān 20:80.
  26. ↑ Qurʾān 17:104.
  27. ↑ Qurʾān 10:90.
  28. ↑ Qurʾān 20:80.
  29. ↑ Qurʾān 2:45.
  30. ↑ Qurʾān 2:40.
  31. ↑ Qurʾān 2:41.
  32. ↑ Qurʾān 2:42.
  33. ↑ Qurʾān 2:43.
  34. ↑ Qurʾān 2:83.
  35. ↑ Qurʾān 2:83.
  36. ↑ Qurʾān 20:81.
  37. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 60.
  38. ↑ Qurʾān 2:211.
  39. ↑ Qurʾān 2:246.
  40. ↑ Qurʾān 26:197.
  41. ↑ Qurʾān 2:85.
  42. ↑ Qurʾān 5:32.
  43. ↑ Qurʾān 5:72.
  44. ↑ Qurʾān 5:110.
  45. ↑ Qurʾān 10:93.
  46. ↑ Qurʾān 17:4.
  47. ↑ Qurʾān 2:44.
  48. ↑ Qurʾān 2:51.
  49. ↑ Qurʾān 255.
  50. ↑ Qurʾān 2:61.
  51. ↑ Qurʾān 2:247.
  52. ↑ Qurʾān 2:84-85.
  53. ↑ Qurʾān 2:83 and 87.
  54. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 56.
  55. ↑ Book of Exodus 3:1-18; Book of Genesis, 46-50; Book of Numbers, 11; Book of Leviticus, 21.
  56. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 56.
  57. ↑ Book of Genesis, 46-47.
  58. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 56.
  59. ↑ Ṣadūq, ''Al-Khiṣāl'', p. 624.
  60. ↑ Muṭahharī, Majmuʿa āthar, vol. 2, p. 168.
  61. ↑ Muṭahharī, Majmuʿa āthar, vol. 2, p. 168.
  62. ↑ Rūḥī, Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn, p. 56.
  63. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 89.
  64. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 89.

References

  • Dihkhudā, ʿAlī Akbar. Lughatnāma. Edited by Akram Sulṭānī and others. Tehran: Dānishgāh-i Tehrān, 1385 Sh.
  • Fayḍ al-Kāshānī, Mullā Muḥsin. Al-Aṣfā fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Qom: Intishārāt-i Daftar-i Tablīghāt-i Islāmī, 1418 AH.
  • Ḥasanzāda Āmulī, Hasan. Durūs-i maʿrifat-i nafs. Qom: Intishārāt-i Alif lām mīm, first edition, 1381 SH.
  • Ḥāshimī Rafsanjānī, Akbar. Farhang-i Qurʾān. Qom: Būstān-i Kitāb, 1385 Sh.
  • Ḥuwayzī, ʿAbd ʿAlī b. al-Jumʿa al-. Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalayn. Qom: ʿIsmā'ilīyān, 1415 AH.
  • Mihrwash, Farhang. "Banī ʾIsrāʾīl". In Dāʾirat al-maʿārif buzurg-i Islāmī, Tehran: Markaz-i Dāʾirat al-Maʿārif-i Buzurg-i Islāmī, 1383 Sh.
  • Muṭahharī, Murtaḍā. Majmuʿa āthar. Seventh edition. Tehran: Ṣadrā, 1377 Sh.
  • Pazhūhishkada-yi Tahqīqāt-i Islāmī. Farhang-i shīʿa. Qom: Zamzam-i Hidāyat, second edition, 1386 SH.
  • Qummi Mashhadi, Muḥammad b. Muḥammad Riḍa. Tafsīr kanz al-daqāʾiq wa bahr al-gharāʾib. Tehran: Wizārat-i Farhang wa Irshād-i Islāmī, 1368 Sh.
  • Rūḥī, Abu l-Faḍl. Sīmā-yi Banī ʾIsrāʾīl dar Qurʾān wa ʿahdayn. Maʿrifat magazine, No 95, Ābān 1384 SH.
  • Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī al-. Al-Khiṣāl. Edited by ʿAlī Akbar Ghaffārī. Qom: Daftar-i Intishārāt-i Islāmī, 1413 AH.
  • Tawfīqī, Husayn. Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg. Tihrān: Nashr-i Wizārat-i Irshād, thirteenth edition, 1389 SH.
  • Ṭūsī, Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan al-. Al-Tibyān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Edited by Aḥmad Qaṣīr al-ʿĀmilī. Beirut: Dār Iḥyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, [n.d].

External links

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