Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature: Difference between revisions

In particular, late antique Syriac Christian influence has become increasingly apparent in Quranic scholarship of the 21st century, in significant part through the work of Dr Joseph Witztum, whose PhD thesis ''The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives'' will be oft-cited in this article.<ref>Witztum, Joseph (2011) [https://www.docdroid.net/EBk1ghM/the-syriac-milieu-of-the-quran-the-recasting-of-biblical-narratives-pdf The Syriac milieu of the Quran: The recasting of Biblical narratives], PhD Thesis, Princeton University</ref> Time and again, small details that were thought to be distinctive of the Quranic versions of Judeo-Christian stories have been found to closely match what is found in the works of the Syriac church fathers such as Ephrem and Narsai. Known Quranic connections with these sources, as well as with the Jewish Talmud and Midrash have been extensively noted by Professor Gabriel Said Reynolds in his 2018 book ''The Quran and Bible:Text and Commentary'' which will be referred to throughout this article.<ref>Reynolds, Gabriel Said, "The Quran and Bible:Text and Commentary", New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2018</ref> These story additions were for exegetical purposes and were not treated by the Rabbis as actual historical events, in contrast to the way Biblical stories themselves were regarded.<ref name="Milikowsy2005">Chaim Milikowsky, [https://www.academia.edu/36274124/Chaim_Milikowsky_Midrash_as_Fiction_and_Midrash_as_History_What_Did_the_Rabbis_Mean_in_Jo_Ann_Brant_et_al_eds_Ancient_Fiction_The_Matrix_of_Early_Christian_and_Jewish_Narrative_Atlanta_Society_of_Biblical_Literature_2005_117_127 Midrash as Fiction and Midrash as History: What Did the Rabbis Mean?] in Jo-Ann Brant, et al., eds., Ancient Fiction: The Matrix of Early Christian and Jewish Narrative (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2005) 117-127</ref>

==Charges of Borrowing from Within the Tradition==

The Qur'an famously records that doubters dismissed its verses as "tales of the ancients" and even used to approach Muhammad with the allegation. These verses occur in the Meccan surahs, where his message was largely rejected by the inhabitants. One instance appears in surah 8, after the migration and battle of Badr in 2AH, though the previous verse is recalling the persecution in Mecca.

A notable example, {{Quran|25|5}}, has unbelievers accusing the Qur'an of ''“making ancient tales written”'' (iktatabaha) that were recited (i.e. dictated) to him or that people assisted him with inventing falsehood. Some academic scholars believe the idea that Muhammad was illiterate was a later reinterpretation of certain verses to negate this charge (see [[Muhammad and illiteracy]]).

The evidence is that Quranic tales were already familiar to its critics, and that at least some of these ''tales of the ancients'' were Judeo-Christian tales and not that of the fanciful Quranic “Arabic/Arabized” fairy-tales of Jinns, Houris and the like is apparent from the context of these verses, particularly those doubters who at the same time dismissed the idea of resurrection, and the charge that another nation had supplied these tales (meaning the Jews and possibly also Sabeans and Christians--nations such as the Byzantine Empire at the time were associated with certain religions such as Chalcedonian Christianity).  

==Possible Channels for Knowledge Transfer==

In Ibn Ishaq's Sirah, Zaid is said to have composed a poem which also mentions among other things:

Moreover, Zaid and all the other Hanifs claimed to be searching for the "Religion of Abraham."<ref>Siratu'r Rasul, vol. i, pp. 76, 77</ref> Besides all this, the Qur'an repeatedly, though indirectly, speaks of Abraham as a "Hanif", the chosen title of Zaid and his friends (for example, {{Quran|16|123}}).

Even the Muslim method of prayer may have originated from Zaid, as Ibn Ishaq (pg. 99-100) wrote that he prayed by prostration on the palm of his hands.

{{Quote|Ibn Ishaq page 180|"According to my information the apostle used often to sit at al-Marwa at the booth of a young Christian called Jabr, a slave of B. al-Hadrami and they used to say "The one who teaches Muhammad most of what he brings is Jabr the Christian, slave of the B. al-Hadrami." Then God revealed in reference to their words "We well know that they say, "Only a mortal teaches him"." The tongue of him at whom they hint is foreign, and this is a clear Arabic tongue.<ref>[http://www.injil.de/Main/Silas/saifdebate2.htm Muhammad the borrower – Debate 2 with Saifullah]</ref>}}

Other names are also mentioned in the sirah including Salman the Persian (who was a Christian). Regardless who this foreigner who taught Muhammad was, it is clear that this highly specific charge was leveled against the Qur'an, and the aforementioned verse is intended to answer this very specific objection. That this foreigner existed is real: the Qur'an itself alluded to him by saying, ‘the tongue of him at whom they hint is a non-Arab’. Again, this strongly indicates that there was in fact such a foreigner who may have influenced the "clear Arabic tongue" of the Qur'an.  

This argument ignores the Qur'an itself. which claims the charges were that Muhammad heard what was recited to him {{Quran|25|4-6}} or that he learned them from a foreigner {{Quran|16|103-104}}. Thus, the existence or otherwise of Arabic translations in Muhammad’s time is an irrelevancy. Moreover, epigraphic and historical evidence from the the time points to an Arabia which was awash in Greek and Syriac literature, and in which knowledge of both the Syriac and Greek alphabets were widespread, and both of these were used to write Arabic along with the Hismaetic and Safaitic scripts <ref>Al-Jallad. 2020. The Linguistic Landscape of pre-Islamic Arabia pages 117-124 </ref>.  

Reynolds notes that this passage develops a Jewish and Christian exegetical tradition, in turn inspired by [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%2015&version=NIV Genesis 15:4] and [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%204&version=NIV Deuteronomy 4:19].<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, ''The Qurʾān and Bible'' pp. 231-2</ref> An early form of the story is found in the ''Book of Jubilees'' (generally dated not long before the Dead Sea Scrolls, c. 100 BCE, among which fragments of the book are found). Here, Abraham had turned to the stars, moon and sun, seeking in them signs of rainfall for the coming year:

The Quranic account of Abraham and the idols commences in {{Quran|6|74}}  where Abraham is quoted as saying "Takest thou idols for gods?" and this theme is then expanded in Sura {{Quran|21|51-71}}. It is exactly the same theme of the Midrashic legend where Abraham takes issue over the idols of his father.  

:In any case it is not asserted that the Qur'an copied from the Bereshit Rabbah, rather its author heard this Judeo-Christian story from others, possibly Jews and Christians. The Bereshit Rabbah is merely evidence to date this particular Judeo-Christian story. There are other Judeo-Christian sources as listed above, so a different text may or may not have been the source of the parallel.

Moreover, Dr Saifullah's team (and his respondants) were apparently unaware of the ''Apocalypse of Abraham'', a work of Jewish origin, generally dated to first or second century CE. The opening of this work has Abraham's father tasking Abraham with selling some smashed idols. Seeing them in pieces and tipped over, Abraham realises that the idols have no power of their own.

Reynolds observes: "In the Syriac Christian work ''Cave of Treasures'' - as in the Qurʾān (v. 12) - the angels prostrate before Adam, but the devil refuses to do so, with the explanation that he is made from fire while Adam is made from dirt". Reynolds here cites "''Cave of Treasures'' [Oc.], 2:12-13, 22-25, and 3:1-2". Reynolds notes in one of his other books that this "marks a distinct development in the narrative of the devil's rebellion. According to the ''Life of Adam and Eve'', the devil's excuse for not worshipping Adam is that he was created first. In the ''Cave of Treasures'', however, the devil's excuse is that he was created from fire, while Adam was created from dirt. It is this tradition that is reflected in the Qurʾān: 'I am better than he is. You created me from fire. You created him from clay.' (Q 7.12; cf. 15.33; 17.61; 38.76)."<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds, "The Qurʾān and its Biblical subtext", London and New York: Routledge, 2010, p.51, ISBN 9780415524247</ref>|

The Quran contains four short stories from the Christian lore of late antiquity, some of which seem to have been popular in the Syriac speaking region. The traditional account about the revelation of Surah al-Kahf in the sira literature is somewhat at odds with this context. According to Ibn Ishaq's biography of Muhammad, he was challenged by Jews from Medina to answer three questions about the young men who disappeared in ancient days, the mighty traveller who reached the eastern and western ends of the world, and the spirit (a question about the spirit is actually answered in {{Quran-range|17|85|87}}, not Surah al-Kahf).<ref>Ibn Ishaq; Guillaume, Alfred (2002) [?–767 AD]. The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah. Oxford University Press. pp. 136–139. ISBN 978-0-19-636033-1<BR />"The rabbis said, ‘Ask him about three things of which we will instruct you; if he gives you the right answer then he is an authentic prophet, but if he does not, then the man is a rogue, so form your own opinion about him. Ask him what happened to the young men who disappeared in ancient days, for they have a marvellous story. Ask him about the mighty traveller who reached the confines of both East and West. Ask him what the spirit is."</ref>

The story of Moses and al-Khidr occurs in {{Quran-range|18|65|82}}. A J Weinsink (d. 1939) proposed that it was derived from the story of Rabbi Joshua ben Levi, though more recent scholarship has shown that the latter is late and heavily influenced by the Islamic tradition. More successfully, Roger Paret identified a significant Christian parallel that predates the Quran.<ref>Gabriel Said Reynolds,"The Quran and Bible:Text and Commentary", New Haven: Yale University Press, 2018 p. 465</ref> It is an example of a genre of literature known as "theodicy" (dealing with the theological problem of evil). Paret identified this parallel in a late sixth or early seventh century CE tale, the Leimon (or Pratum Spirituale, Spiritual Meadow) of John Moschus (d. 619 CE). The basic structure of the story is identical to the Quranic passage, and has many similarities of detail though also differences.  

{{Quote|[http://wesley.nnu.edu/biblical_studies/noncanon/gospels/psudomat.htm The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew: Chapter 20]|And it came to pass on the third day of their journey, while they were walking, that the blessed Mary was fatigued by the excessive heat of the sun in the desert; and seeing a palm tree, she said to Joseph: Let me rest a little under the shade of this tree. Joseph therefore made haste, and led her to the palm, and made her come down from her beast. And as the blessed Mary was sitting there, she looked up to the foliage of the palm, and saw it full of fruit, and said to Joseph: I wish it were possible to get some of the fruit of this palm. And Joseph said to her: I wonder that thou sayest this, when thou seest how high the palm tree is; and that thou thinkest of eating of its fruit. I am thinking more of the want of water, because the skins are now empty, and we have none wherewith to refresh ourselves and our cattle. Then the child Jesus, with a joyful countenance, reposing in the bosom of His mother, said to the palm: O tree, bend thy branches, and refresh my mother with thy fruit. And immediately at these words the palm bent its top down to the very feet of the blessed Mary; and they gathered from it fruit, with which they were all refreshed. And after they had gathered all its fruit, it remained bent down, waiting the order to rise from Him who bad commanded it to stoop. Then Jesus said to it: Raise thyself, O palm tree, and be strong, and be the companion of my trees, which are in the paradise of my Father; and open from thy roots a vein of water which has been hid in the earth, and let the waters flow, so that we may be satisfied from thee. And it rose up immediately, and at its root there began to come forth a spring of water exceedingly clear and cool and sparkling. And when they saw the spring of water, they rejoiced with great joy, and were satisfied, themselves and all their cattle and their beasts. Wherefore they gave thanks to God.”}}