Posts Tagged ‘foreign wives’
In Bible versus Quran: the whole assembly agreed to get rid of their wives
This is the fifth article of the series:
“The Foreigner woman in Bible versus Quran”
Few quotes from the previous articles of this series are given here.
In language, the foreign or the strange woman is the alien or the exotic or the outsider woman. However, as determined by the Bible, the foreign or the strange woman is the non-Israelite woman.
Subsequently, all non-Israelite women are foreign or strange women.
This indicates that the women in the Bible are but one of two categories; they are either Legitimate (genuine) or Foreign (strange).
According to the inspired word of God (Ezra 10), the Bible says that while Ezra was praying and confessing, weeping and throwing himself down before the house of God, a large crowd of Israelites, men, women and children, gathered around him. They too wept bitterly. Then the son of Jehiel said to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the peoples around us. Now let us make a covenant before our God to send away all these women and their children, in accordance with the counsel of my lord and of those who fear the commands of our God. Let it be done according to the Law.
Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful; you have married foreign women. Now make confession to the LORD, the God of your fathers, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and from your foreign wives.
Then, the entire congregation responded with a loud voice: you are right! We must do as you say. And by the first day of the first month they finished dealing with all the men who had married foreign women. Among the descendants of the priests, the following had married foreign women: From the descendants of Jeshua son of Jozadak, and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib and Gedaliah. They all gave their hands in pledge to put away their wives, and for their guilt they each offered a ram from the flock as a guilt offering.
Upon citing the tribes even the Levi, 15 families and group of people even the singers and of the porters and 111 men, the Bible says that all these had married foreign women, and some of them had children by these wives.
In Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, it is certain that such marriages (with non-Israelite women) are sinful, and ought not to be made.
On the other hand, Verses 16:96-97 of the Quran talk about the fact that all women are equal in Islam. The verses say:
All which is with you of the things, all what you have of wealth, in the life of this world will come to an end; it will perish. But that which is Allah has of reward remains; it will never come to an end; it will never perish. Allah shall surely pay those who were patient, in fulfilling their covenants, in refraining from making a false pledge and acknowledge the Truth, their reward according to the best of what they used to do, and the best here means the good. Whoever acts righteously, whether male or female, and is a believer, him verily Allah shall revive with a goodly life. This is said to be life in Paradise; or it is in the life of this world by providing him or her well balanced provision for both the body and the spirit.
[It is interesting that the suicidal tendency in the very poor Islamic counties is extremely low in comparison to its high rate in the very rich western counties. This is simply because the non- balanced provision for both the body and the spirit. Remember that man is composed two parts, body (material) and Spirit; both need well-balanced nutrition!]
Back to the subject of foreign women, it is clear that the Quran is not interested at all in race, color, nationality of the male or the female. All men and all women have the same rights, duty, and responsibility; the best among them is the closer to his or her Lord, the Almighty Creator.
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The Bible: Ezra 10:1-3, 10-14, 17-19 and 44 (King James Version)
1Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore.
2And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said unto Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the land: yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing.
3Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.
10And Ezra the priest stood up, and said unto them, Ye have transgressed, and have taken strange wives, to increase the trespass of Israel.
11Now therefore make confession unto the LORD God of your fathers, and do his pleasure: and separate yourselves from the people of the land, and from the strange wives.
12Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice, As thou hast said, so must we do.
13But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to stand without, neither is this a work of one day or two: for we are many that have transgressed in this thing.
14Let now our rulers of all the congregation stand, and let all them which have taken strange wives in our cities come at appointed times, and with them the elders of every city, and the judges thereof, until the fierce wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us.
17And they made an end with all the men that had taken strange wives by the first day of the first month.
18And among the sons of the priests there were found that had taken strange wives: namely, of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren; Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah.
19And they gave their hands that they would put away their wives; and being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock for their trespass.
44All these had taken strange wives: and some of them had wives by whom they had children.
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The Quran (Yusuf Ali Translation):
Verses 16:96-97
96) What is with you must vanish: what is with Allah will endure. And we will certainly bestow, on those who patiently persevere, their reward according to the best of their actions.
?97 whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has faith, verily, to him will we give a new life, a life that is good and pure and we will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions.
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Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:
Are the Scholars honest when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?
Professor Dr. Ibrahim Khalil,
Prof. of Clinical and Chemical Pathology, Head (ex-) of Clinical Microbiology and Infection Control Unit, Ain-Shams University. Cairo, Egypt
President of the Egyptian Society of Inventors, Honorary President of SPIC-Egypt (The Society of Practitioners of Infection Control – Egypt), Co-Chief Editor of the Egyptian Journal of Lab. Medicine
Member of the Egyptian union of Writers, Published 5 Books and some 60 Medical Articles, Supervisors for 79 PhD theses and111 Master Degree theses.
Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/motivational-articles/in-bible-versus-quran-the-whole-assembly-agreed-to-get-rid-of-their-wives-1631359.html
In the Quran: What an excellent servant was King Solomon
The Foreigner woman in Bible versus Quran (3)
This is the third article of the series: “The Foreigner woman in Bible versus Quran”.
Few quotes from the first article of this series are given here.
In language, the foreigner woman or the stranger woman is the alien woman or the exotic woman or the outsider woman. However, as determined by the Bible (e.g. 1 Kings 11:1), the foreigner woman or the stranger woman is the non-Israelite woman.
Subsequently, all non-Israelite women are foreigner or stranger women.
This indicates that the women in the Bible are but one of two categories; they are either Legitimate or Foreigner.
Moreover, the Bible (Ezra 10:2) states that you break faith with God if you marry foreign women.
Ezra 10:2 (English Standard Version)…We have broken faith with our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land…
According to the inspired word of God (1 Kings 11:1-11), the Bible says that
King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter, Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord God had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, He followed the goddess of the Sidonians, and the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord God; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.
King Solomon built a high place for the detestable god of Moab, and for the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.
The Lord God became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord who had appeared to him twice. Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command. So the Lord God said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates.
Herein, there are some questions:
1) How come that King Solomon had 1000 women. In an old interpretation, it is said that he used to sleep with all of them every night!
2) How come that the Prophet Wise King Solomon did evil, did not follow his Lord, built high places for other gods so that God became angry with him?
On the other hand, the Quran (Verse 38:30) says that Allah bestowed on David, Solomon, his son. What an excellent servant! That is, Solomon. Truly he was a penitent soul, always returning [to Allah] with glorification and remembrance at all times. He was ever turning in repentance (towards Allah) he is ever betaking himself to Allah and engaged in His obedience.
Herein there are two important ethical issues.
1) If the Quran is Anti-Israelite, and since King Solomon is an Israelite king, then the Quran would have exaggerated all the negative attributes of him and would say, this is the behavior of the Israelite kings! But, the truth is the truth.
2) According to the Islamic teachings (Quran and Hadith), anyone says or believes that King Solomon (or any other Prophet) did evil, did not follow his Lord, built high places for other gods etc. is categorized as disbeliever and he or she will dwell in the Eternal Hell in the Afterlife.
For more details, you can read on the net my series of 25 articles about King Solomon in the Quran; just type on Google search: “Not in Bible But in Quran” + King Solomon + my name.
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The Bible
1 Kings 11:1-11 (American Standard Version)
1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites;
2 of the nations concerning which Jehovah said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go among them, neither shall they come among you; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart.
4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Jehovah his God, as was the heart of David his father.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
6 And Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and went not fully after Jehovah, as did David his father.
7 Then did Solomon build a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, in the mount that is before Jerusalem and for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammon.
8 And so did he for all his foreign wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
9 And Jehovah was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from Jehovah, the God of Israel, who had appeared unto him twice,
10 and had commanded him concerning this thing that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which Jehovah commanded.
11 Wherefore Jehovah said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
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The Quran
Verse 38:30 (Pickthal Translation):
And we bestowed on David, Solomon. How excellent a slave! Lo! He was ever turning in repentance (toward Allah).
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Back to my question to the smart and interested reader:
Are the Scholars truthful when they claim that the Quran quoted from the Bible?
Professor Dr. Ibrahim Khalil,
Prof. of Clinical and Chemical Pathology, Head (ex-) of Clinical Microbiology and Infection Control Unit, Ain-Shams University. Cairo, Egypt
President of the Egyptian Society of Inventors, Honorary President of SPIC-Egypt (The Society of Practitioners of Infection Control – Egypt), Co-Chief Editor of the Egyptian Journal of Lab. Medicine
Member of the Egyptian union of Writers, Published 5 Books and some 60 Medical Articles, Supervisors for 79 PhD theses and111 Master Degree theses.
Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/motivational-articles/in-the-quran-what-an-excellent-servant-was-king-solomon-1589857.html