Qur’an Cover-to-Cover: Day 17 (“The Night Journey”)
Happy Christmas everyone! I hope your day is filled with joy. As for me, I’m working my way through a very long chapter of the Qur’an…
Surah 17 – “The Night Journey” (Al-Isra)
This chapter begins with an brief reference to event which gives its name to this chapter: The Night Journey. We are told that, in a single night, Muhammad travelled from Mecca to Jerusalem. There’s a second journey made later that night to Heaven, but it is not mentioned in this chapter.
Then begins some teaching concerning the Children of Israel. We are told that Allah “gave Moses the Scripture and made it a guidance for [them]”. Again, there is no indication that the Hebrew scriptures have been corrupted at all.
After a brief mention of Noah, we are told that Allah told the Children of Israel that they would “surely cause corruption on the earth twice” and he promised punishment on both of these occasions.
1. On the first occasion, Allah promised that a servant of His, someone with great military power, would invade their homes. He then promised that the Israelites would eventually be victorious.
2. On the second occasion, Allah sent enemies who entered the Jerusalem Temple and destroyed it.
I’m not exactly sure which events are being described here, since we are given very little information. The destruction of the Temple was done first by the Babylonians and then by the Romans.
We then jump to some verses about judgement, describing how each person will read the record of his own deeds on Judgmenet Day which will either condemn him or vindicate him. Once more we are told that “no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another”. I’m not sure if this is a subtle dig at the Christian understanding of Jesus’ crucifixion.
After the verses about Judgment, there is some moral teaching on the family. Muslims are told to “worship not except [Allah] and to parents, good treatment”. They are told to “speak to them a noble word” and not to speak words of disapproval or irritation.
We are told that when Muslims recite the Quran that Allah puts between them and unbelievers “a concealed partition” which prevents the guidance from reaching them. I’m confused as to why this should be the case. The subsequent verses are about the disbelief of Muhammad’s critics, particularly concerning the Resurrection.
There is a brief reference to Allah giving David the book of Psalms.
We are told that some invoke (according to the footnote) “angels, prophets, deceased scholars”, but that these supposed intercessors themselves seek means of access to Allah.
The Fall of Satan is then recounted, but with no new inforamtion.
Allah’s goodness and mercy are exstolled for a few verses and we then return again to the topic of Judgement Day.
There is a cryptic passage about unbelievers trying to tempt Muhammad away and invent something false about Allah. We are told that he was saved from doing this because Allah strengthened him. We are told, however, that if Muhammad had done this, He would have made him “taste double [punishment in] life and doube [after] death”.
Although the tenses are confusing, it then speaks of Muhammad being driven from Mecca, but his enemies remaining there only for a little while longer. My footnote comments that within ten years of Muhammad’s emigration, Mecca is completely cleared of his enemies, so I assume this is treated as a prophecy.
There are some verses exhorting prayer at the various appointed times.
Some people ask Muhammad about the soul and Allah tells him to say that the soul is the concern of Allah and that mankind has only been given a little bit of knowledge about it.
We are told that even if mankind and the jinn gathered to produce something like the Qur’an, they would fail. I’ve often heard this assertion from Muslims, but it’s always been one which has confused me. What makes the Qur’an really so amazing? I’m finding this current project of reading it really tough going…
Muhammad’s critics demand various miracles or angelic visits, but Muhammad is told to say “Was I ever but a human messenger?… Sufficient is Allah as Witness between me and you” The miraculous signs of Moses are mentioned, since this were rejected by Pharaoh as magic, thereby showing, I assume, why Muhammad does no miracles.
We are told that Allah has separated the revelation of the Qur’an by intervals so that Muhammad may recite it to the people over a prolonged period. If you recall, the gradual revelation of the Qur’an was one of the criticisms of Muhammad’s opponents.
We are told that “the righteous among the People of the Scriptures…recognize[d] the truth contained in the Qur’an” and fell “upon their faces in prostration”. Apparently they said “the promise of our Lord has been fulfilled”. I’m assuming this “promise” is meant to be the promise of another prophet. We end the chapter with an explicit denial of Christianity: “Praise to Allah, who has not taken a son and has had no partner in [His] dominion and has no [need of a] protector out of weakness”.
Q1. Where does the Old Testament say that the Children of Israel “will surely cause corruption on the earth twice”? What are these two incidents described?
Q2. To whom is Allah speaking in ayah 8? It’s not a quotation from the Old Testament.
Q3. Ayah 13 speaks of Allah having “imposed his fate upon [each person’s] neck”. This sounds like predestination to me, but my footnote describes it as each man being “responsible for his own destiny”. We have a similar seeming contradiction in ayah 97.
Q4. We are told in ayah 15 that “never would We punish until We sent a messanger”. Does this mean that those who lived in Mecca prior to Muhammad are in Paradise?
Q5. We are regularly told about prophets who warned a city which was later destroyed, but this never happened in the life of Muhammad, correct? Having said that, ayah 76 makes me wonder if there was an expectation that Mecca would be destroyed…
Q6. Does ayah 21 speak about different levels of Hell and Paradise?
Q7. What are the “seven heavens” mentioned in ayah 44?
Q8. If a “concealed partition” is placed between Muslims and unbelievers when they recite the Qur’an in order to prevent the guidance from reaching them, are the unbeievers really culpable?
Q9. What does it mean when it says that “We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], over them as a manager”? Does it simply mean that Muhammad doesn’t get to choose ejudicate the mercy and punishment of Allah (which the surrounding verses articulate)?
Q10. Is the argument in ayat 56-57 that some people invoke angels, prophets, deceased scholars, but they shouldn’t because these people themselves seek access to Allah?
Q11. What is “the sight which We showed you” during the mi’raj (ascension)? How was it “a trial”?
Q12. To what does ayah 73 refer? It reminds me of the Satanic Verses.
Q13. The tenses of ayah 76 are confusing. Has Muhammad fled to Medina yet? Does ayah 80 speak of the entrance into Medina?
Q14. What is the significance of the question concerning the human soul which is asked in ayah 85?
Q15. What is it about the Qur’an which makes ayah 88 say that all mankind and jinn could never produce anything like it?
Q16. In ayah 89, it says that “we have certainly diversified for the people in this Qur’an from every [kind of] example”. What does this mean?
Q17. Do you know of a parallel passage for ayah 104 in the Old Testament?
Q18. Who were the people who fell in prostration in ayah 107 at the reciting of the Qur’an? Christians? Jews? What “promise” did they think had been “fulfilled”?
Today was a long chapter! Right, now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to enjoy some Christmas dinner…