5. PIOUS PEOPLE’S DU‘Ā (SUPPLICATION) IN THE QUR’ĀN (4)

 5. PIOUS PEOPLE’S DU‘Ā (SUPPLICATION) IN THE QUR’ĀN (4)

          Among other groups of pious people whose supplications are mentioned in the Qur’ān  are:

 e. of the people of the Heights (aṣḥāb al-A‘rāf, أصحاب الأعراف). These people would be placed in a place called al-A‘rāf. The word al-A‘rāf is the plural of ‘urf meaning “an elevated land”.  Al-A‘rāf here means a high place or wall from which they see the dwellers of Paradise, and the dwellers of Hell. This area is also “a gate therein inside it will be mercy [i.e., Paradise], and outside it will be torment [i.e., Hell].” (Q. 57:13). It is, then, a barrier between Paradise and Hell which prevents the dwellers of the Hellfire from entering Paradise.

Who are the people who will be placed in the heights, wall or gate who will not be admitted, neither Paradise nor Hell, although eventually will be admitted to Paradise? There are many interpretations, among which are as follows:

1.       They are those whose good and bad deeds are equal. So, they are not very pious. Their evil deeds prevent them from being qualified to enter Paradise, and their good deeds prevent them from being qualified to enter Hell. Therefore, they stop there until they are admitted to Paradise (the interpretation of Ibn ‘Abbās, Ḥudhayfah, Ibn Mas‘ūd, and other companions of the Prophet, as swell as of people of later generation; this is the most acceptable interpretation).

2.       They are people who joined the Muslims in the jihād defending Islam without their parents’ permission. They will not be admitted to Paradise because they disobeyed their parents, but will not enter Hell either, because they were martyrs.  This view is similar to the first one.

3.       They are people who also joined the Muslims in the jihād without the permission of one of their parents. This view is similar to the previous one (b)

4.       They are people who lived in the era of fatrah (the interval between two prophets, where there was no new prophet to follow, and the earlier prophet was unheard of, so that he could not be followed), and the children of idolaters who died young.

The condition of the aṣḥāb al-A‘rāf in the Hereafter is portrayed in the Qur’ān , as follows:

وَبَيْنَهُمَا حِجَابٌ وَعَلَى الأَعْرَافِ رِجَالٌ يَعْرِفُونَ كُلاًّ بِسِيمَاهُمْ وَنَادَوْاْ

أَصْحَابَ الْجَنَّةِ أَن سَلاَمٌ عَلَيْكُمْ لَمْ يَدْخُلُوهَا وَهُمْ يَطْمَعُونَ )الأعراف:46)

And between them there will be a (barrier)

 screen and on al-A‘rāf will be men, who recognize all,

 by their marks. And they will call out to the dwellers

 of Paradise, “Peace be on you” and at that time they

 will not yet have entered it (Paradise), but they

 will hope to enter (it). (Q. 7:46)

When they look at the dwellers of Paradise they recognize them, greet them, and wish to enter Paradise, but Allah delays it. Allah said:

. وَإِذَا صُرِفَتْ أَبْصَارُهُمْ تِلْقَاء أَصْحَابِ النَّارِ قَالُواْ

رَبَّنَا لاَ تَجْعَلْنَا مَعَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ. (الأعراف: 47)

and when their eyes will be turned towards the dwellers

of the Fire, they will say: “Our Lord! Place us not with the

people who are wrong-doers.” (Q. 7:47)

 When they look at the dwellers of Hell they pray to Allah to disassociate them with wrong-doers. They will call people whom they know and tell them that their greatness in number and wealth they are proud of do not save them from Allah’s torment. Then Allah will say to the dwellers of Hell: “Are they, the aṣḥāb al-A‘rāf, the people of the Heights, of whom you swore that I would never show them mercy?  I (Allah) say to them, ‘Enter Paradise, no fear shall be on you, nor shall you grieve’” (Q. 7:48-49). Finally, they all enter Paradise, the last people who to enter it without being punished in Hell.

        Although we enter Paradise not only because of our faith and good deeds, but also because of Allah’s blessings on us, there is much possibility of entering it, for the following reason:

          Allah says in the Qur’ān :

مَنْ جَاءَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ فَلَهُ عَشْرُ أَمْثَالِهَا وَمَنْ جَاءَ بِالسَّيِّئَةِ

فَلَا يُجْزَى إِلَّا مِثْلَهَا وَهُمْ لَا يُظْلَمُونَ (الأنعام:160)

   Whoever brings a good deed shall have ten times the

 like thereof to his credit, and whoever brings an evil deed

 shall have only the recompense of the like thereof, and

 they will not be wronged. (Q. 6:160)

          This apparently means that if we do one good deed and one bad deed, we shall still have 9 credits, since one good deed will make 10 credits. Therefore, there is more chance of having more good deeds than bad deeds, and to enter Paradise. Moreover, the Prophet s.a.w. said in a ḥadīth qudsī[1] narrated by Abū Hurayrah that Allah said:

    مَنْ هَمَّ بِحَسَنَةٍ فَلَمْ يَعْمَلْهَا كَتَبْتُ لَهُ حَسَنَةً فَإِنْ عَمِلَهَا كَتَبْتُهَا بِعَشْرِ أَمْثَالِهَا إِلَى

 سَبْعِ مِائَةٍ وَإِنْ هَمَّ بِسَيِّئَةٍ فَلَمْ يَعْمَلْهَا لَمْ أَكْتُبْ عَلَيْهِ فَإِنْ عَمِلَهَا كَتَبْتُهَا

عَلَيْهِ سيئة واحدة (رواه ابن حبان)

 Whoever intends to do a good deed and he does

 not do it I will record (a reward of) a good deed for

 him; if he does it I will record tenfold to seven hundred

 of the merit of it. If he intends to do evil and he does

 not do it, I will not record it, but if he does it I will

 record (the demerit of) one evil deed against

 him. (Reported by Ibn Ḥibbān).[2]

    However, the kind of deed, either good or evil, has to be taken into consideration. A person who has just greeted people which is a good deed, then he robs the bank which is a grave evilness, does not automatically mean that he still has 9 credits (merits) left. Moreover, there is a condition he has to fulfill, namely, to be a believer, a Muslim. Allah says:

 مَنْ عَمِلَ سَيِّئَةً فَلَا يُجْزَى إِلَّا مِثْلَهَا وَمَنْ عَمِلَ صَالِحًا مِنْ ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنْثَى وَهُوَ

مُؤْمِنٌ فَأُولَئِكَ يَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ يُرْزَقُونَ فِيهَا بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ (غافر:40)

Whosoever does an evil deed, will not be requited

 except the like thereof; and whosoever does a right deed,

whether male of female and is a true believer,  such will

 enter Paradise, where they will be provided therein (with

 all things in abundance) without limit  (Q. 40:40)

In other words, you have to be Muslim, a believer, and do right deed to be admitted to Paradise where Allah will reward you with everything.

f.  of oppressed people in their land. In the early period of Islam, Muslims were ordered to be patient with the Makkan idolaters’ mistreatment.  There are two main reasons for this: Firstly, they were two weak, as they were very few in number. Retaliation would mean suicide and self-destruction. We can understand why Jesus (Prophet ‘Īsā a.s.) did not allow his followers who were few in number to fight back the mighty Roman ruler in his time. Secondly, they were living in Makkah the most sacred city on the earth for Muslims. Many Muslims wished that they would be allowed to fight back out of frustration, but Allah did not revealed and prescribe the fighting in this sacred place. ‘Abd a-Raḥmān ibn ‘Awf and several of his companions came to the Prophet s.a.w. and said: “O Allah’s Prophet! We were mighty when we were pagans, but when we embraced the faith, we become weak.”

          The Prophet said:

إِنِّي أُمِرْتُ بِالْعَفْوِ فَلَا تُقَاتِلُوا الْقَوْمَ (رواه النسائي و البيهقى)

I was commanded to pardon the people, so do not

 fight them (Reported by al-Nasā’ī and al-Bayhaqī)

After the Muslims’ emigration to Madinah to avoid the Makkan persecution, and after they had become strong enough, Allah allowed them to fight back. Allah said:

أُذِنَ لِلَّذِينَ يُقَاتَلُونَ بِأَنَّهُمْ ظُلِمُوا وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى نَصْرِهِمْ لَقَدِيرٌ. الَّذِينَ أُخْرِجُوا

مِنْ دِيَارِهِمْ بِغَيْرِ حَقٍّ إِلَّا أَنْ يَقُولُوا رَبُّنَا اللَّه.ُ.. (الحج:39-40)

 Permission to fight (against disbelievers) is given to those

 (believers) who are fought against, because they have been wronged; and surely, Allah is Able to give them (believers)

 victory—Those who have been expelled from their

 homes unjustly, because they said: “Our

 Lord is Allah...” … (Q. 22:39-40)

          According to the classical Qur’ān commentator Mujāhid, a group of believers who had been prevented by the Makkan non-believers from emigrating to Madinah were overtaken and caught up by them. Then the above verses were revealed, allowing them to fight the non-believers, and they did. Other classical Qur’ān commentators Qatādah and Ibn Jurayj said that the verse was the first revelation where Muslims were allowed to fight

          After the prescription of fighting, some Muslims became weary and fearful, and wished the jihad against the idolaters to be delayed, because it would mean bloodshed, widows, and orphans. To this, Allah replied that that enjoyment of life was short, the Hereafter was better for him who feared Allah, Who would treat them justly. Moreover, they would not be able to escape death even if they were in a strong and high fortress (Q. 4:77-78). Then Allah said:

وَمَا لَكُمْ لَا تُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَالْمُسْتَضْعَفِينَ مِنَ الرِّجَالِ وَالنِّسَاءِ

 وَالْوِلْدَانِ الَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا أَخْرِجْنَا مِنْ هَذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِ الظَّالِمِ أَهْلُهَا

وَاجْعَلْ لَنَا مِنْ لَدُنْكَ وَلِيًّا وَاجْعَلْ لَنَا مِنْ لَدُنْكَ نَصِيرًا (النساء:75)

And what is wrong with you that you fight not in

 the Cause of Allah, and for those weak, ill-treated, and

 oppressed among men women, and children, whose cry

 is: “Our Lord! Rescue us from this town [i.e., Makkah]

 whose people are oppressors [i.e., Makkan idolaters];

 and raise for us from You one who will protect, and

 raise for us from You one who will help.” (Q. 4:75)

          These weak, ill-treated, and oppressed people, were the Makkan Muslims who were too weak, and therefore, were excuse from emigrating to Madinah. They prayed to Allah to rescue them from the oppression of the Makkan idolaters who opposed the Prophet’s propagation to Islam.

          According to this verse rescuing the weak, the ill-treated and the oppressed, besides defending the religion of Islam is included in the jihad in the path of Allah. It includes freeing them from captivity by paying ransom or by force.

   (CIVIC, 13 February, 20150

المراجع:

المكتبة الشاملة

تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ(

تفسير القرطبى (ت. 671 هـ(

تفسير ابن كثير (ت. 774 هـ(

 Ali, A.Yusuf. The Meanings of the Holy Qur’ān. Kuala Lumpur: Percetakan Zafar Sdn Bhd, 2005.

Asad, Muhammad. The Message of the Qur’ān. Gibraltar: Dar al-Andalus, 1984.

---

[1] Ḥadīth qudsī (‘holy tradition” is a tradition of the Prophet s.a.w. where the wording is from him but the idea is from Allah. In this kind of tradition the Prophet  s.a.w. said, “Allah the Almighty said…”  It is different from the verses of the Qur’an where both the idea and the wording are from Allah.

[2] Similar traditions were also narrated by Ibn ‘Abbās and reported by Ahmad, Bukhārī and al-Nasā’ī, and narrated by Abū Hurayrah and reported by Ahmad and Ibn Ḥibbān.

4. PIOUS PEOPLE’S DU‘Ā (SUPPLICATION) IN THE QUR’ĀN (3)

 4. PIOUS PEOPLE'S DU'A (SUPPLICATION) IN THE QUR'?N (3)
    Among other groups of pious people whose supplications are mentioned in the Qur'an are: the people of the Cave (أَصْحَابُ اْلكَهْف)
d. The people of the cave were people who took refuge in a cave escaping from the persecution of their rulers for their belief. They fell asleep for over 300 solar years (309 lunar years). This story was told in the Qur'an as the Prophet's answer requested by al-Nadr ibn al-Harith and 'Uqbah ibn Abi Mu'it suggested by the Jewish rabbis in Madinah to test him.
        The rabbis told them: "Ask him about three things which we will tell you to ask, and if he answers them then he is a Prophet who has been sent by Allah; if he does not, then he is saying things that are not true… Ask him about some men in ancient times, what was their story, for there was a strange and wondrous tale (i.e. "People of the Cave"), about a man who travelled extensively and reached the east and the west of the earth (i.e., Dhu'l-Qarnayn),  and  about the Ruh (soul or spirit)."
        When they asked the Prophet, he told them: "I will tell you tomorrow about what you have asked me," but he did not say in sha' Allah ("If Allah wills"). For this, Allah delayed giving the answer through Jibril (Gabriel). Fifteen days had passed, and Jibril   did not come to tell him stories they had asked him.  This grieved him, as the Makkan people started doubting him.
 Eventually, Jibril came and the Prophet complained for his delay. Gabriel told him that it was up to Allah when he should come. This was a lesson for us to say in sha' Allah ("If Allah wills") before we start doing something.  Jibril told him about the young men who fled from the persecution of their pagan king for their belief in Allah and took refuge inside a cave. Like the story of Prophet Yusuf (Joseph) a.s. and many other stories in the Qur'an, the names of people and places in them were not given, as it is a book of guidance and awakening, not a book of history.
 Although the story of the People of the Cave is given in brief and general term in the Qur'an, Allah explains it in more detail. He says: "Do you think (O Muhammad) that the people of the Cave and al-Raqim  were a wonder among Our Signs?" (Q. 18:9). It means, as put by Ibn Kathir, their case is not something amazing compared to Allah's power and ability in creating the heavens and the earth, the alternation of night and day, the subjugation of heavenly bodies (the sun, the moon and the stars), and other mighty signs, all indicate Allah's great power to do whatever He likes, and doing more amazing things than the story of the people of the Cave.
In the next verse Allah said:
إِذْ أَوَى الْفِتْيَةُ إِلَى الْكَهْفِ فَقَالُوا رَبَّنَا آتِنَا مِنْ لَدُنْكَ رَحْمَةً وَهَيِّئْ
لَنَا مِنْ أَمْرِنَا رَشَدًا (الكهف:10)
(Remember) when the young men fled for refuge (from
 their disbelieving folk) to the Cave. They said: "Our Lord!
 Bestow on us mercy from Yourself, and facilitate for
 us our affair in the right way!"(Q. 18:10)
    Here they prayed to Allah to give them mercy and to conceal them from their people, and to direct their matter well, namely, to grant them a good end.
Then Allah caused them to sleep many years when they entered the cave. Then He raised them from their slumber. They disputed how long they stayed in the cave. (Q. 18:11-12). There is an indication that the entrance of the cave faced north, as when the sun rose its shade decreased to the right, and when it set it entered their cave from the left. (Q. 18:17). Ibn 'Abbas said that the sunshine did not directly hit them, so that it did not harm them.
While sleeping they turned their bodies on their right and on their left sides, and their dog lay down at the door of the cave as if guarding them. Allah made their appearance frightening, so that no one would come near them or touch them until they woke up from their sleep (Q. 18:18)
As they entered the cave at the beginning of the day and woke up at the end of the day they thought that they had stayed in the cave a day or part of a day. They sent one of them to the town to buy good and lawful food with a silver coin.  He was very careful not to disclose his identity, or people would stone him, abused him or harmed him, or turn him back to their religion. (Q. 18:20)
 The number of people of the Cave was not explicitly mentioned in the Qur'an, but there were three views mentioned in it: a. three people, their dog being the fourth; b. five people, their dog being the sixth; c. seven people, their dog being the eighth. Both the first and the second view were rejected because they were based on رَجْمًا بِالْغَيْب ("guessing at the unseen"(, whereas the third view was not, and therefore could be correct. However, Allah told the Prophet to say (رَبَي أَعْلَمُ بِعِدَّتِهِم (الكهف:22 "My Lord knows best their number…" (Q. 18:22)
Western scholars have different view on the location of the cave. Some say it was in Turkey, others in Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan. The story was popular in the Middle Ages and in several versions, including Greek, Syriac,Coptic, and Georgian. According to this story during the persecution of the Christians under the Roman Emperor Decius (249-251 CE) seven or eight Christian soldiers took refuge at a cave near their native city Ephesus, as they refused to practise pagan sacrifices. They fell miraculously asleep, and they woke up during the reign of the Eastern Roman Emperor, Theodosius II (408-450 CE). They explained to him the profound meaning of their experience, and then died. The emperor was moved by their miraculous presence as evidence of the resurrection of the body in the Christian doctrine, and then absolved all bishops who had been persecuted for their belief in the Resurrection. The ruin of Ephesus is located near the present city of Izmir at the Eastern coast of Turkey. Not far from the ruin there was a cave at a hill where it was written at its gate THE CAVE OF THE SEVEN SLEEPERS, but was not very attractive to visitors (I was the only visitor of the cave at that time).
Although we find some similarities between this story and that of the people of the Cave mentioned in the Qur'an, the sleepers slept 208 years, whereas in the Qur'an it was mentioned 300 solar years, equal to 309 lunar years.(Q. 18:25)
 In 1963 the Jordanian archaeologist Muhammad Taysir Z.ubyan discovered the cave of the people of the Cave near the ancient city of Petra in Jordan. This is what Muslim scholars believe to be the one mentioned in the Qur'an. At the entrance of the cave it is written in Arabic and English:
كهف أهل الكهف
قبور بيزنطية) وردت قصتهم في القرآن الكريم)
CAVE OF THE SEVEN SLEEPERS
BYZANTINE TOMBS - ONE MENTIONED
IN THE KORAN IN THE STORY OF THE
SEVEN SLEEPERS
                         (CIVIC, 6 February, 2015)
المراجع:
المكتبة الشاملة  
تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ(
تفسير القرطبى (ت. 671 هـ(
تفسير ابن كثير (ت. 774 هـ(
http://www.thaqafnafsak.com/2014/01/مكان-أهل-الكهف-في-عمان.html
http://mawdoo3.com/ قصة_اهل_الكهف
Ali, A.Yusuf. The Meanings of the Holy Qur'an. Kuala Lumpur: Percetakan Zafar Sdn Bhd, 2005.
Asad, Muhammad. The Message of the Qur'an. Gibraltar: Dar al-Andalus, 1984.
Abu Khalil, Dr. Shawqi. Atlas of the Qur'an. Riydh: Maktabah Dar-us-Salam, 2003
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/536521/Seven-Sleepers-of-Ephesus
http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2009/10/historicity-of-seven-sleepers-of.html

3. PIOUS PEOPLE’S DU‘Ā (SUPPLICATION) IN THE QUR’ĀN (2)

3. PIOUS PEOPLE’S DU‘Ā (SUPPLICATION) IN THE QUR’ĀN (2)

The du‘ā’ (supplication) of pious people as groups mentioned in the Qur’ān can be divided into categories, as follows: a. of the followers of Prophet Mūsā (Moses), a.s.; b. of the followers of Prophet Samuel a.s.; c. of the followers of Prophet ‘Īsā (Jesus) a.s.; d. of the people of the Cave (أَصْحَابُ اْلكَهْف); e. of the people of the Heights or the Faculty of Discernment (أَصْحَابُ الأَعْرَاف); f. of oppressed people in their land; g. of the  followers of  good people of earlier generations; h. of the believers of Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. and other prophets in general in facing the enemy; and h. of believers in general.

a.     Prophet Moses told his followers to put their trust in Allah (tawakkul) if they really believed in Him. So, the said:

عَلَى اللَّهِ تَوَكَّلْنا رَبَّنا لَا تَجْعَلْنا فِتْنَةً لِلْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ. وَنَجِّنا بِرَحْمَتِكَ

مِنَ الْقَوْم  الْكافِرِينَ ( يونس:85-86)

   In Allah we put our trust. Our Lord! Make us not

 a trial for the folks who are wrongdoers (i.e., do not

 make them over power us). And save us by Your

 Mercy from the disbelieving folks. (Q. 10:85-86)

          According to the classical Qur’ān commentator Mujāhid, the first verse means that they prayed to Allah not to let the people of Pharaoh or any other people to torture them, so that they would say, “if these people (the Israelites) were following the truth, we would not have the ability to have authority over them or punish them” so that they would follow falsehood because of them (the Israelites). (Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī, Q. 10:85; Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī, Q. 10:85).  The right interpretation according to al-Ṭabarī is that the Israelites wished that Allah would prevent them from affliction and tribulation of the people of Pharaoh, as well as any of their affairs which would become an obstruction from following Prophet Moses, affirming him and what he had brought with him. This was undoubtedly a fitnah (a deceiving trial) for them. (Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī, Q. 10:85).

The interpretation of the second verse: “And save us by Your Mercy from the disbelieving folks” is that they asked Allah’s protection from Pharaoh and his people who burdened them with hard labour.     

  Their supplication was answered by Allah when they were delivered from the Pharaoh’s bondage led by their Prophet Moses a.s. They successfully crossed the Red Sea to the desert of Sinai.

          The magic of Pharaoh’s magicians were defeated by that of Prophet Moses. As they knew that this magic was really from Allah, that Moses’s staff did really turn into a real snake, they believed in Prophet Moses a.s., Prophet Aaron a.s. and in Allah Who sent them without the Pharaoh’s permission. This made him very angry, and threatened to punish them severely. He would cut off their hands and their feet from opposite side and then he would crucify them, but they defied the threat (Q. 7:117-125). They prayed:

رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ (الأعراف:126)

Our Lord! pour on us patience, and cause us to

 die as Muslims. (Q. 7:126)

          According to the Qur’ān commentator al-Ṭabarī, the verse means: “Our Lord! When the Pharaoh tortured us send us an obstruction to keep us away from disbelieving You, and when we die, let us die following Islam, the religion of Your friend Ibrāhīm (Abraham), a.s., not associating You with anything.” (Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī, Q. 7:126). Ibn ‘Abbās, ‘Ubayd ibn ‘Umar, Qatādah, and Ibn Jurayj commented that these people started the day as sorcerers and ended it as martyrs.

b.    Allah mentioned the story of a group among the Children of Israel after the time of Prophet Moses who asked their prophet at that time to appoint for them a king. The prophet was not mentioned by name in the Qur’ān, but according to some mufassirīn (Qur’ān commentators) his name was Shamwīl, Samuel, meaning “Allah has heard my pleas” (Some say that his name was Sham‘ūn,  Simeon or Simon which has the same meaning).[1] They promised him that with the new king they would fight for Allah’s way. Prophet Samuel asked them whether they would refrain from fighting when it became prescribed for them. They said that they would never refrain from fighting in Allah’s way while they had been driven out of their homes and families (kept as captives). But when fighting was ordered for them, they turned away except a few of them. (Q. 2:246).

          When Prophet Samuel a.s. told them that Allah had appointed Ṭālūt (Saul) as a king over them, they said: “How can he be a king over us when we are fitter than him for the kingdom, and he has not been given enough wealth.” (Qatādah said that Ṭālūt belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, neither the tribe of prophethood at Levi to which Prophet Moses belonged, nor that of khingship at Yahudha to which Prophet David and Solomon belonged. They wondered how a person who did not belong to the tribe of prophethood nor kingship became their king. They also said that he was poor to be a king. Some said that he used to bring water to the people, others said his profession was dyeing skins). Prophet Samuel a.s. said: “Verily, Allah has chosen him above you and has increased him abundantly in knowledge and stature. And Allah grants His kingdom to whom He wills. Allah is All-Sufficient for His creature’s needs, All-Knower.” (Q. 2:247).

          Ibn ‘Abbās said that Ṭālūt at that time was the most knowledgeable person among the Children of Israel, the most handsome and the most physically perfect among them which scared the enemy. It was said the he was called Ṭālūt because of his tallness. It did not mean the bigness of his body, but rather his goodness in many ways and his bravery.

          Then when Ṭālūt (Saul) set out with his army, he said: “Verily, Allah will try you by a river.[2] So, whoever drinks thereof, he is not of me (shall not accompany me today), and whoever tastes it not, he is of me, except him who takes (thereof) in the hollow of his hand.” Yet, all except a few of them, drank thereof. So, when they had crossed the river, he and those who believed with him said: “We have no power this day against Jālūt (Goliath) and his host.” But those (knowledgeable scholars among them) who knew with certainty that they were going to meet Allah, (strengthened their resolve and) said: “How often a small group overcame a mighty host by Allah’s leave!” And Allah is with the patient.[3] (Q. 2:249).

          And when they advanced to meet Jālūt (Goliath) and his forces they invoked:

  رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وَانْصُرْنَا

عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ (البقرة:250)

Our Lord! Pour forth on us patience, and set

firm our feet [i.e., save us from running away and

from feebleness] and make us victorious over

 the disbelieving people. (Q. 2:250)

So they routed them by Allah’s leave, and Dāwūd   (David) killed Jālūt (Goliath). Then Allah gave him the kingdom (after the death of king Ṭalūt and Prophet Samuel) and wisdom (prophethood) and taught him that which Allah willed. (Q. 2: 251). He was known in the Bible as King David, and among Muslims as Prophet Dāwūd (Dā’ūd) a.s. he was actually a prophet-king, like his son who inherited his kingdom, the Prophet-King Solomon (Sulaymān).[4]

c. The disciples of Prophet ‘Īsā (Jesus) a.s who helped him was called in the Qur’ān al-ḥawārirrūn (supporters). When he came to know their disbelief, he asked them, “Wo will be my helpers in Allah’s cause?” In other words, “Who will help me convey the Message of Allah?” The ḥawārirrūn replied, “We are the helpers of Allah; we believe in Allah, and bear witness that we are Muslims.” (Q. 3:52). Then they prayed to Allah, saying:

رَبَّنَا آمَنَّا بِمَا أَنْزَلْتَ وَاتَّبَعْنَا الرَّسُولَ فَاكْتُبْنَا مَعَ الشَّاهِدِينَ (53آل عمران:53)

Our Lord! We believe in what You have sent down

nd we follow the Messenger [‘Īsā, Jesus]; so write us

 down among those who bear witness. (Q. 3:53)

Similarly, the Prophet before his migration to Madinah, did not find anybody who would help him in conveying the Message of Islam, as the Quraysh tribe had prevented him from doing so. In Madinah, the anṣār (“helpers”, the people of Madinah) helped him, and gave him refuge. They comforted him and protected him from his enemies.

When the Prophet s.a.w. encouraged people to fight in the battle of al-Aḥzāb (Confederates) also called the Battle of Khandaq (Trench) which took place in Shawwal 5 A.H, al-Zubayr came forward, and when he called again, al-Zubayr came forward again. The Prophet s.a.w. then said; “Every Prophet has a ḥawārī (a helper), and my ḥawārī is al-Zubayr.”

(CIVIC, 30 January, 2015)

المراجع: 

المكتبة الشاملة       

تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ )

تفسير القرطبى (ت. 671 هـ)

تفسير ابن كثير (ت. 774 هـ)

الراغب الأصفهاني(ت. 425 هـ). مفردات ألفاظ القرآن.

الدامغاني (ت. 478 هـ). قاموس القرآن

Ali, A.Yusuf.  The Meanings of the Holy Qur’ān. Kuala Lumpur: Percetakan Zafar Sdn Bhd, 2005.

Asad, Muhammad. The Message of the Qur’ān.Gibraltar: Dar al-Andalus, 1984.

Abu Khalil, Dr. Shawqi. Atlas of the Qur’ān. Riydh: Maktabah Dar-us-Salam, 2003

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[1] In the Old Testament Samuel was a prophet and a judge (1Samuel 1:20; 3:19-21). The Old Testament mentioned that the Children of Israel asked for a king (1Samuel 8), and Saul was made king (1Samuel 10:9-26).

[2] The river was the Jordan river. See al-Dāmaghānī (d. 478/1085-6), Qāmūs al-Qur’an, s.v. n-h-r. According to Ibn ‘Abbās and others, the name of the river was the Sharī‘ah river which flowed between Jordan and Palestine.

[3] According to mufassirīn the term ṣabr (patience) has many meanings in the Qur’an depending on the contexts. In facing the enemy it means “bravery”, the opposite of “cowardice”. See al-Rāghib al-Aṣfahānī (d. ca. 425/1132)  Mufradāt Alfāẓ al-Qur’an, s.v. ṣ-b-r.

[4] According to Islam prophets sent by Allah, including Biblical prophets mentioned in the Qur’an and King David as well as King Solomon, are ma‘ṣūm (infallible, sinless, protected by Allah from committing sin). Therefore, any kind of sin claimed to have been committed by any of them in the Bible is rejected in Islam, such as: Aaron took the gold errings of the Israelite women “and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, ‘These are your gods [in another version ‘This is your god’] O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’” So, according to the Bible, Aaron was guilty of making and worshipping the golden calf (Exodus 32:1-5). According to the Qur’an, instead of Aaron, it was the Sāmirī, the Samaritan, who did it. However, tranlating al-Sāmirī as “the Samaritan”, i.e., a man of the Jewish clan of the Sāmirah would be unlikely, as Muhammad Asad put it, “… this sect did not exist yet at the time of Moses, it was possible that—as Ibn ‘Abbas maintained (Rāzī)—the person in question was one of the many Egyptians who had been converted to the faith of Moses and joined the Israelites on their exodus from Egypt ... in which case the designation sāmirī might be connected with the ancient Egyptian shemer, “a foreigner” or “stranger….” (Asad, The Message of the Qur’an, Q.20:85, n. 70). In other words, it was the newly Egyptian convert who made the idol. As punishment Prophet Moses banished him and that he would say throughout his life lā misāsa (“don’t touch me!”). (Q. 20:97). This expression, according to Muhammad Asad, was “a metaphorical description of the loneliness and the social ostracism in which he would henceforth find himself.” (Ibid., Q.20:97, n. 83).