History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - The Children of Israel

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The Koran summarizes God's covenant with the Children of Israel as follows.

"God took compact [covenant] with the Children of Israel; and We raised up from among them twelve chieftains [leaders]. And God said, 'I am with you. Surely, if you perform the prayer, and pay the alms, and believe in My Messengers [Apostles] and succor [help] them, and lend to God a good loan, I will acquit you of your evil deeds, and I will admit you to gardens underneath which rivers flow. So whosoever of you thereafter disbelieves, surely he has gone astray from the right way." (Koran 5:15)

There are several issues with this verse when compared with the Jewish account and record. First is the idea that God raised up twelve chieftains, or leaders, for the people. While it is true that these twelve tribes descended from the twelve individuals, they were long dead when the Children of Israel entered into a covenant with God to possess the promised land. The life of these tribes were tribal, even thought many of these tribes were quite large, and they had already developed distinct leadership patterns even before their coming to the place of possessing the Promise Land. While one could say that God "raised" up the leaders of each tribe, there is no claim to this in the Jewish text and it seems that the people selected and followed the leaders as they chose, as any tribal society of that time would have, and, while we do read their names in the Jewish texts, most of them are only named once or twice in the text. We know very little of them and they play a very minor role in the Jewish narrative. Far from God raising up twelve chieftains, we merely see twelve leaders already in place and simply acknowledged by Moses when the function of leadership was necessary, such as in numbering the people and leading armies.

Secondly, the requirements to perform that prayers, pay the alms, believe in Moses, and lend to God were never part of the covenant God made with Israel. The basic covenant was contained in the Ten Commandments which enjoins the worship of one God, keeping the Sabbath, and honoring your father and mother. It also forbids idols, taking the Lord's name in vain, murder, adultery, stealing, perjury, and covertness. All these other things are requirements of Muhammad's religion, not God's

Third, there is no evidence that Moses, or God, ever required the people to obey Moses. The command was always, and only, to obey God. This does not mean that Moses was not obeyed, but the command was to obey God and His law. Moses was merely the conveyor of this law and it was the law and God that were to be obeyed. Muhammad seems to have been particular about the people obeying him and projected that same command on the prophets and messengers of the scriptures to try and justify his demand that the people obey him.

Fourth, the commands of God were never given as a means to forgive sin, rather they were given to define sin. If you did these things then it was well with you, but if you transgressed the laws of God, you were a sinner, and once a sinner, you could not simply try and do better at the law in order to find forgiveness under the law. James tells us, "For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all." (James 2:10) The Law provided for only one means to forgive sin, and that was through the shedding of blood. It was only through the blood sacrifice of animals that one could be forgiven under the Jewish law.

Lastly, the Jewish law contained no promise of eternal life, or life in Paradise, for those who kept the law. The best promise was that they would live long in the land God have given them. "So you shall keep His statutes and His commandments which I am giving you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may live long on the land which the Lord your God is giving you for all time." (Deuteronomy 4:40) The truth is that the law is incapable of making anyone fit for heaven and it cannot impart eternal life to anyone. Such requires a greater sacrifice than that of animals and requires a greater transformation of the soul than the law can accomplish. It would be another two thousand years before God would reveal the true path to eternal life and to eternal habitations with God.

More to come...

David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Lot

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

In the story of Lot, as told in the Jewish scriptures, Lot had separated from his uncle Abraham because the land could not support both their herds. Lot chose to migrate eastward towards the valley of the Jordan. The scriptures says that he "settled in the cities of the valley, and moved his tents as far as Sodom." (Genesis 13:12) Sodom, and its surrounding cities, were exceedingly wicked and the time came for God to judge them of their sins. However, before God brought His judgment, He disclosed His plans to Abraham. "The Lord said, 'Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed?'... And the Lord said, 'The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.'" (Genesis 18:17-18, 20-21) Abraham pleaded with God not to destroy the righteous (if they should be found) on account of the wicked. God consented and promised, "Then he said, 'Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?' And He said, 'I will not destroy it on account of the ten.'" (Genesis 18:32-33) It is in this context, and with this mission, that the two angels proceeded into Lot to verify what was spoken of the city. In the end, only four righteous were found and one turned back as they left.

The Koran records the coming of the angels to lot as follows.

"When that Our messengers came to Lot he was troubled on their account and distressed for them [his arm was too weak]; but they said, 'Fear not, neither sorrow [distress not thyself], for surely we shall deliver thee and thy family, except thy wife; she has become of those that tarry." (Koran 29:32)

The Jewish scriptures never indicate that the Angels came with any message for the people, lest of all the sinners. It seems from the Jewish account that their mission was simply to count the number of righteous in the city and, if they could not find at least ten righteous people to advert the judgment of God, then they were to rescue what righteous people they could find. We also do not find Lot distressed by the coming of the angels, only concerned for their safety. "When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. And he said, 'Now behold, my lords, please turn aside into your servant's house, and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.'" (Genesis 19:1-2) Lot was rightly concerned for their safety, knowing the kind of place Sodom was.

The Koran records that the people of Sodom rejected the message of the angels.

"The people of Lot cried lies to the Envoys [Apostles] when their brother Lot said to them, 'Will you not be godfearing? I am for you a faithful Messenger [Apostle worthy of all credit], so fear you God, and obey you me." (Koran 26:160-163)

However, we have no recorded account of the angels delivering any message at all to the Sodomites or of Lot preaching to them and declaring himself to be a Muslim before them. Furthermore, we have no account of the people "crying lies" to the angels or their message. The only account we see of the people speaking is when they requested that Lot turn over the men so they could sexually abuse them. "Before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter; and they called to Lot and said to him, 'Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may have relations with them.'" (Genesis 19:4-5) Lot's only response to them was to offer them his daughters instead. "Please, my brothers, do not act wickedly. Now behold, I have two daughters who have not had relations with man; please let me bring them out to you, and do to them whatever you like; only do nothing to these men, inasmuch as they have come under the shelter of my roof." (Genesis 19:7-8) Not quite the response you would expect from a godfearer and a Muslim.

The Koran says that God sent judgment upon the people of Sodom.

"The people of Lot cried lies to the warnings. We loosed against them a squall of pebbles [stone-charged wind] except the folk [family] of Lot" (Koran 54:34)

However, the Jewish scriptures record only two forms of judgment upon the city, and neither of them involved pebbles. First, they struck the men who came out to abuse the angels with blindness. "But the men reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. They struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the doorway." (Genesis 19:10-11) Then they judged the city with fire from above. "The sun had risen over the earth when Lot came to Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven, and He overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground." (Genesis 19:23-25) It would be hard for one to interpret the judgment of burning stones from heaven as a mere squall of pebbles as Muhammad maintains.

Finally, the Koran records the deliverance of Lot and his family.

"So We delivered [rescued] him and his family, except his wife; We decreed she should be of those that tarried [lingered]." (Koran 27:58)

"set forth [depart], thou with thy family, in a watch [in the dead] of the night, and let not any one of you turn round [back], excepting thy wife; surely she shall be smitten by that which smites them." (Koran 11:83) 

One of the recurring themes in the Koranic story of Lot and his rescue is the condemnation of Lot's wife as one who was not to be rescued. From the very beginning of the story, the angels make it known that they had been sent to save Lot and his family, except for Lot's wife for "we have decreed, she shall surely be of those that tarry." (Koran 15:60) However, no where in the Jewish account of this story do we ever see any predetermination that Lot's wife was not to be saved. She evidently was counted among the righteous as the angels included her in those who were to flee the city. They explicitly urged Lot saying, "Up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city." (Genesis 19:15) Lot's wife was included in this urging. In the end, it was not the prejudgment of God that led to Lot's wife's demise, but her own lusts and desires for Sodom. "But his wife, from behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt." (Genesis 19:26) She was chosen for deliverance, but she turned back, longing for the pleasantries and pleasures of Sodom. It was in her turning back that she became unfit for deliverance. She alone sealed her fate, and that, only as she fled.

More to come...
David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Abraham

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The Jewish scriptures give a concise and simple account of Abraham's, or Abram's as he was known them, departure from Mesopotamia. "Now the Lord said to Abram, 'Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father's house, to the land which I will show you'... So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran." (Genesis 12:1, 4) No other more detailed account of Abraham's life in Haran or the exact circumstances of his departure are recorded anywhere in the Jewish and Christian scriptures. The Koran, however, fills in the gaps, supposedly by direct revelation from Gabriel.

The story goes that Abraham learned to worship God alone, that being apart from idols and other gods, while his father was still an idolater. In the story God used the heavens and the Earth to convince Abraham to worship only God.

"And [remember] when Abraham said to his father Azar, 'Takest thou idols [images] for gods? I see thee, and thy people, in manifest error.' So We were showing Abraham the kingdom of the heavens and earth, that he might be of those having sure faith. When night outspread over him he saw a star and said, 'This is my Lord.' But when it set he said, 'I love not the setters [gods that set].' When he saw the moon rising, he said, 'This is my Lord.' But when it set he said, 'If my Lord does not guide me I shall surely be of the people gone astray.' When he saw the sun rising, he said, 'This is my Lord; this is greater [greatest]!' But when it set he said, 'O my people, surely I am quit of that you associate [joining gods with God]. I have turned my face to Him who originated [created] the heavens and the earth, a man of pure faith [right religion]; I am not of the idolaters [one who adds gods to God].'" (Koran 6:74-79)

This is interesting because, in other places, the Koran clearly states that Abraham was never an idolater.

"No; Abraham in truth was not a Jew, neither a Christian; but he was a Muslim and one pure [sound] of faith; certainly he was never of the idolaters [of those who add gods to God]." (Koran 3:60)

If Abraham was never an idolater, then there would have been no need to be taught about serving one true God, but the Koran teaches this again when, in another story, Abraham rebukes his father for worshiping other God and tells him that knowledge has come to him that there is only one God. Again the claim is made that Abraham learned to be monotheistic and that this knowledge turned him away from idolatry.

"And mention in the Book Abraham; surely he was a true man, a Prophet. When he said to his father, 'Father, why worshippest thou that which neither hears nor sees, nor avails [profits] thee anything? Father, there has come to me knowledge such as came not to thee; so follow me, and I will guide thee on a level [even] path." (Koran 19:42-44)

Muhammad tells us that Abraham's father rejected Abram's pleas and threatened him with violence. Because of this Abraham departed from his father and his land.

"Said he, 'What, art thou shrinking from [cast thou off] my gods, Abraham? Surely, if thou givest not over [forbear not], I shall stone thee; so forsake me now for some while [a length of time].' He said, 'Peace be upon thee! I will ask my Lord to forgive thee; surely He is ever gracious to me. Now I will go apart [separate myself] from you and that you call upon, apart from God; I will call upon my Lord" (Koran 19:47-49)

However, the scriptures make it very clear that Abraham left Haran at the command of the Lord, not to escape the violence of his father or his country men. In Muhammad's story, it was not only Abraham's father who threatened him, but also the people of the land, for Abraham mocked and destroyed their idols.

"Then he turned [went aside] to their gods, and said, 'What do you eat [do you not eat]? 'What ails you, that you speak not?' And he turned upon them smiting them with his right hand." (Koran 37:89-91)

"So he broke them into fragments, all but a great one [the chief of them] they had, for haply they would return to it. They said, 'Who has done this with our gods? Surely he is one of the evildoers.' They said, 'We heard a young man making mention of them, and he was called Abraham.'" (Koran 21:59-61)

"They said, 'Burn him, and help [come to the succor of] your gods, if you would do aught [anything at all].' We said, 'O fire, be coolness and safety for Abraham!'" (Koran 21:68-69)

"They said, 'Build him a building [pyre], and cast him into the furnace [glowing flame]!'" (Koran 37:95)

The scriptures give us no evidence that any of this ever happened; that Abraham mocked and destroyed the idols, that the people threatened to burn Abraham, or that his leaving Haran was do to the threats of his father and the people. This is all fiction added later by Muhammad.

There are two other stories relating to Abraham that Muhammad adds in his Koran. The first relates to Abraham's leaving his father.

"Abraham asked not pardon [forgiveness] for his father except because of a promise he had made to him; and when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of God, he declared himself quit [clear] of him; Abraham was compassionate [pitiful], clement [kind]." (Koran 9:115)

It seems contradictory to declare Abraham to be compassionate when we find him only reluctantly praying for the forgiveness of his father; praying for forgiveness out of duty and obligation only since he had previously promised to do so. A man of true compassion does not reluctantly pray for someone's forgiveness but prays from their heart with a genuine desire that the other may be forgiven. A man of true compassion prays for others even when they are enemies; prays for their forgiveness and for the graces of God to be upon them. A man of true compassion prays as Jesus taught us to pray. "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (Matthew 5:44-45)

The second story relates to how Abraham learned that God could raise the dead.

"And when Abraham said, 'My Lord, show me how Thou wilt give life to the dead,' He said, 'Why, dost thou not believe?' 'Yes,' he said, 'but that my heart may be at rest.' Said He, 'Take four birds, and twist them to thee, then set a part of them on every hill, then summon them, and they will come to thee running. And do thou know that God is All-mighty, All-wise.'" (Koran 2:262)

The only story we have concerning Abraham and birds is when Abraham made a sacrifice to the Lord and chased the birds away from the carcasses. "Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds. The birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away." (Genesis 15:10-11) Perhaps Muhammad was just confused over the exact details of the original story. Anyway, we do know that at the time when Abraham was asked to sacrifice his only son, he was full of faith that God cloud raise the dead. "By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son; it was he to whom it was said, 'In Isaac your descendants shall be called.' He considered that God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a type." (Hebrews 11:17-19)

More to come...

David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Noah and the flood (part 2)

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The timing of the flood, as recorded in the Koran, was set to correspond with the peak of Noah's exasperation for the taunts and jeers, and ultimate rejection, by his fellow man.

"And so he called unto his Lord, saying, 'I am vanquished [they prevail against me]; do Thou [come thou therefore to] succour me!' Then We opened the gates of heaven unto water torrential, and made the earth to gush [break forth] with fountains, and the waters met for a matter decreed [settled decree]." (Koran 54:10-12)

However, in the Jewish story we here of no complaints by Noah Also, the timing of the  building of the ark and the coming of the flood was on God's timetable not Noah's. We read that simply, one day, God came to Noah and said, "Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in this time." (Genesis 7:1)

The Koran also records how the judgment of the flood came upon the people because they failed to believe Noah.

"But they cried [treated] him lies [as a liar]; so We delivered him, and those with him, in the Ark, and We drowned those who cried lies to Our signs [charged our signs with falsehood]; assuredly they were a blind people." (Koran 7:62)

"And recite to them the story of Noah when he said to his people, 'My people, if my standing here [my abode with you] is grievous to you and my reminding you of the signs of God, in God have I put my trust; so resolve on your affair, with your associates [false gods], then let not your affair be a worry to you, but make decision unto me, and respite me not. Then if you turn your backs, I have not asked you for any wage [reward]; my wage [reward] falls only on God, and I have been commanded to be of those that surrender [of the Muslims].' But they cried him lies [treated him as a liar]; so We delivered [rescued] him, and those with him, in the Ark, and We appointed them as viceroys [survive the others], and We drowned those who cried lies to Our signs [charged our signs with falsehood]; then behold how was the end of them that were warned!" (Koran 10:72-74)

However, the Jewish scriptures instruct us that it was because of the immensity of the people's sins that the flood came. The judgment for the sin of mankind came even before the threat of a flood, or the command to build an ark, was given. "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The Lord said, 'I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.'" (Genesis 6:5-8) This was before God approached Noah to tell him what he was going to do. There judgment and punishment had nothing to do with how they treated, and what they thought of, Noah.

In addition to their punishment for not believing Noah, the Koran records that they were also drowned so that they could not later tempt Noah to sin after he began to resettle the Earth.

"And Noah said, 'My Lord, leave not upon the earth of the unbelievers [infidels] even one [single family]. Surely, if Thou leavest them, they will lead Thy servants astray, and will beget none but unbelieving libertines [sinners, infidels]." (Koran 71:27-29)

No such conversation is recorded in the Jewish scriptures and it is unbecoming of a true and loving God to destroy one person because of the weakness of another. No where else do we see God slaying someone for the weakness of another towards sin. Even when the Devil fell, God did not destroy him but let him live until the end of time, even though He knew of the weakness of mankind.

In recording who was saved in the ark, the Koran records that Noah's son and wife were not saved and that they perished in the flood.

"and Noah called to his son, who was standing apart, 'Embark with us, my son, and be thou not with the unbelievers!'  He said, 'I will take refuge in a mountain, that shall defend me from the water.' Said he, 'Today there is no defender from God's command but for him on whom He has mercy.' And the waves came between them, and he was among the drowned." (Koran 11:44-45)

"God has struck a similitude [example] for the unbelievers -- the wife of Noah, and the wife of Lot; for they were under two of Our righteous servants, but they betrayed them, so they [their husbands] availed them nothing whatsoever against God; so it was said, 'Enter, you two, the Fire with those who enter.'" (Koran 66:10)

We know that Noah had three sons."Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth." (Genesis 5:32) We know that Noah, his wife, his sons, and his sons' wives all entered the ark. "Then Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him entered the ark because of the water of the flood." (Genesis 7:7) Peter also records for us the total number of people who were saved in the ark. "in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water." (1 Peter 3:20-21) Eight people were saved and they include Noah's son (sons) and his wife. Here the Koran is flatly wrong in its assertion and retelling of this story.

Finally, what is most telling about Muhammad's recounting of this story is who is at the center of the story.

"And the people of Noah, when they cried lies to the Messengers [treated their Apostles as imposters], We drowned them, and made them to be a sign to mankind" (Koran 25:39)

At the center of Muhammad's story we find not God and His righteousness and judgment, not the people and their wanton sin, and not the promise of God to spare future generations. Rather we find Noah. Man is at the center of the story. A man that Muhammad describes as himself; one spoken to by God, one unbelieved and threatened by the people, and one whom God defends by destroying his adversaries. The story is told, not to instruct the people, but to bolster Muhammad's position and to warn the people against breaking ranks with Muhammad. In the end, it is a story that serves only to benefit Muhammad.

More to come...

David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Noah and the flood (Part 1)

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The Koran introduces Noah to us saying,

"Indeed, We sent Noah to his people, and he tarried among them a thousand years, all but fifty; so the Flood seized them, while they were evildoers." (Koran 29:13)

While Noah did live to be nine hundred and fifty years old, only six hundred of those years did he live with the rest of mankind before they were destroyed in the flood. "Now Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of water came upon the earth... Noah lived three hundred and fifty years after the flood. So all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years, and he died." (Genesis 7:6, 9:28-29) While it is possible that the Koran meant his total life span was nine hundred and fifty years, the syntax of the sentence seems to indicate he lived that long before the flood.

Noah, prior to the flood, was a preacher of righteousness. The Koran records,

"He said, 'O my people, I am unto you a clear [plain-spoken] warner, saying, "Serve God, and fear Him, and obey you me, and He will forgive you your sins" (Koran 71:2-4)

We have no account, in the Jewish scriptures, of what Noah preached. In fact, Peter alone tells us he was a preacher. "[God] did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly." (2 Peter 2:5) What is interesting in the Koranic scripture is the demand by Noah to be believed and obeyed as a prerequisite to the forgiveness of sins. No where in the Jewish scripture do we see a true prophet of God demanding obedience to themselves as proof of a person's fidelity towards God. However, in the Koran, we see this claim over and over again, as if Muhammad is trying to ensure the obedience of the people to himself by claiming that all the prophets before him required the same fealty. The reality is that the prophets of the Jewish scriptures saw themselves as messengers of God and sought to being people into obedience to God not to themselves.

The Koran depicts Noah as being vengeful of those who mocked him during the time it took him to build the ark.

"So he was making the Ark; and whenever a council of his people passed by him they scoffed [laughed] at him, He said, 'If you scoff [laugh] at us, we shall surely scoff [laugh] at you.’" (Koran 11:40)

However, we have no evidence from the scriptures that Noah took any offence at the jeers and mocking of those who did not believe, nor that he was expectant of, or looked forward to, their punishment for their unbelief. In fact, we have no recorded account of Noah speaking to the people or the people responding to Noah at all. There is no recorded evidence of the people mocking or ridiculing Noah for his obedience to God. Furthermore, it would be unseemly for a preacher of righteousness to delight in the knowledge that, in the end, it would be him scoffing at them and their misfortune.

The Koran makes Noah a preacher before he started building the ark. The decision to build the ark came latter when Noah complained that the people did not believe him and cried "Lies!" to his message. The ark was a way for Noah to escape and to be delivered from the unbelievers and their threats.

"My Lord, my people have cried me lies [treat me as a liar], so give true deliverance [decision] between me and them, and deliver [rescue] me and the believers [faithful] that are with me. So We delivered [saved] him, and those with him, in the laden ship, then afterwards We drowned the rest." (Koran 26:117-120)

"He said, 'O my Lord, help me, for that they cry me lies [against their charge of imposture].' Then We said [revealed] to him, 'Make thou the Ark under Our eyes and as We reveal, and then, when Our command comes and the Oven boils [surface of the earth boils up], insert [carry] in it two of every kind and thy, family -- except for him against whom the word already [sentence] has been spoken; and address [plead with] Me not concerning those who have done evil; they shall be drowned." (Koran 23:26-28)

However, the scripture makes clear that judgment came upon the people, not because they disbelieved Noah, but because they were evil and had filled their land with violence. The building of the ark was not an after thought when the people started crying "Lies!" to Noah, but was part of the plan from the beginning as a means of saving the remnant of the righteous on Earth. "Then God said to Noah, 'The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth. Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; you shall make the ark with rooms, and shall cover it inside and out with pitch." (Genesis 6:13-15)

Repeatedly, through Muhammad's retelling of Jewish stories, especially those of the prophets, we see the themes of the people crying "Lies!" to the prophet's message and God punishing them for their unbelief. In fact, this often takes the center stage of the story. It is as if Muhammad is trying to prove he is a prophet because of all the people who were crying "Lies!" to his message, just like in the past, as well as trying to scare the people into obedience to him by the threat of punishment which he claims has always come upon those who disbelieved the prophets.

It is also interesting that, in Muhammad's story, God tells Noah not to pray for the lost nor to bring their plight before God. God was done with them, He had no further use or care for them, and He didn't want to hear about them or be bothered with them any longer. Noah was to leave them to their judgment and not to pity them, show them any compassion, or plead for their forgiveness before God. This is quite a different God from the God of David who said, "For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You." (Psalms 86:5)

More to come...
David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Cain, Abel, and Job

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

Someone once asked, "How long did Cain hate his brother"? The answer, "As long as he was Abel!" Putting aside the cheap jokes, the Koran records the first murder, the murder of Abel by his brother Cain, as follows.

"Then his soul [passion] prompted him to slay his brother, and he slew him, and became one of the Losers [who parish]. Then God sent forth a raven, scratching into the earth, to show him how he might conceal the vile body of his brother. He said, 'Woe is me! Am I unable [too weak] to be as this raven, and so conceal my brother's vile body?' And he became one of the remorseful [repentant]." (Koran 5:33-34)

Rodwell writes, "In the Jewish tradition the raven shews the mode of burial to Adam, not to Cain." (J.M. Rodwell, The Koran, footnote 5.16) However, the Jewish scriptures themselves do not recount the instruction of a raven on burial to either Adam or Cain. The scriptures simply record the death and burial of Abel as follows, "And it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him." (Genesis 4:8) It is doubtful that Cain would need any instructions on how to hide a body. He was a tiller of the ground and would have know how to dig a hole big enough to hide his brother's body. Muhammad was also wrong to account repentance to Cain when he realized that he lacked even the wisdom of a raven when it came to hiding things in the ground. for we know that when God came to question him regarding Abel's death, he was still not remorseful or repentant of the murder. "Then the Lord said to Cain, 'Where is Abel your brother?' And he said, 'I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?' He said, 'What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to Me from the ground.'" (Genesis 4:9-10) Even upon hearing his punishment for his crime, his thoughts were not towards repentance and forgiveness, rather he complained about the severity of his punishment. "Cain said to the Lord, 'My punishment is too great to bear! Behold, You have driven me this day from the face of the ground; and from Your face I will be hidden, and I will be a vagrant and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.'" (Genesis 4:13-15) We never see Cain remorseful or repentant for his acts as Muhammad claims; not at the teaching of a raven, not when confronted by God, and not when receiving the punishment for his crime.

Job

The Koran accounts the end of Job's life; when God restored to him all he had lost. Specifically, we see God commanding Job to execute on his wife the words he had previously spoken.

"[And we said] 'Take in thy hand a bundle of rushes [a rod], and strike therewith, and do not fail in [break] thy oath.'" (Koran 38:43)

Rodwell says of this verse, "Thy wife; on whom he had sworn that he would inflict a hundred blows, because she had absented herself from him when in need of her assistance, or for her words (Job 2:9). The oath was kept, we are told, by giving her one blow with a rod of a hundred stalks." (J.M. Rodell, The Koran, footnote 38.15) If Rodwell's understanding of this verse is correct, then there are three thing wrong with this verse. First, we do not see Job ever taking an oath to punish his wife for leaving him in his time of need. Secondly, while Job's wife was not the most supportive of his suffering, it is unclear if she ever physically abandoned him during his suffering. Job later says, "My breath is offensive to my wife, and I am loathsome to my own brothers." (Job 19:17) How can the be if she had left him. Finally, there is the command by God for Job to beat his wife. It is one thing to advocate for wife beating, but it is another to attribute it to the command of God. How can the same God who said, "But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also," (Matthew 5:39) then turn to Job and command him to keep his promise to beat his wife? Such actions would be inconsistent and unbecoming of the one true God.

More to come...

David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Adam and Eve

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The Koran records the creation of mankind as follows.

"And when thy Lord said to the angels, 'I am setting in the earth a viceroy [one in my stead].' They said, 'What, wilt Thou set therein one who will do corruption there, and shed blood, while we proclaim [celebrate] Thy praise and call [extol] Thee Holy?' He said, 'Assuredly I know that you know not.'" (Koran 2:28)

One of the things of interest in this passage is God's discussion with the angels. The Jewish scriptures records God's decision to create mankind simply as, "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.'" (Genesis 1:26) There is no indication that God discussed His intentions with the angels or anyone else prior to Him creating mankind. When God said "let us" He was not talking to the angels but to Himself. We know this because we know the angels had no part in the creation of mankind or of any other part of the creation of God. However, what is of greater interest is the response of the angels. Their first response was to expect sin from God's creation. As far as we know, sin had not entered into God's creation. Even the Devil had not sinned for that did not happen until after man was created. The Koran clearly describes the first sin of Satan saying,

"And when We said to the angels, 'Bow yourselves to Adam'; so they bowed themselves, save Iblis; he refused, and waxed proud, and so he became one of the unbelievers." (Koran 2:32)

Having never witnessed sin, why would the angels expect sin from God's new creation? We know that, according to God, when He looked upon His creation, He "saw that it was good." (Genesis 1:25) Why should the angels assume evil from that which God saw was good?

After creating Adam, God presents him to the angels to demonstration Adam's superiority over them.

"And He taught Adam the names, all of them; then He presented them unto the angels and said, 'Now tell Me the names of these, if you speak truly [are endowed with wisdom].'" (Koran 2:29)

However, the scriptures clearly records that God did not teach the names of each animal to Adam, rather He let Adam choose a name for each animal. "Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name." (Genesis 2:19) Furthermore, there is no evidence from the Jewish scriptures that God ever tried to test the angels or to show them inferior to Adam's knowledge and wisdom. In fact, the writer of Hebrews intimates the exact opposite. "You have made Him a little while lower than the angels." (Hebrews 2:7) While this verse may be taken to speak specifically of Jesus, He nevertheless came as a man and, as a man, was lower than the angles.

After Satan's fall, the Koran tells us that God warned Adam regrading Satan and his desire to deceive him.

"And when We said to the angels, 'Bow yourselves to [worship] Adam'; so they bowed themselves, save Iblis; he refused. Then We said, 'Adam, surely this is an enemy to thee and thy wife. So let him not expel [drive out] you both from the Garden, so that thou art unprosperous [wretched]." (Koran 20:115)

However, there is no account in the scriptures that God ever warned Adam and Eve about Satan, nor was expulsion from the garden ever a part of the original threat. God simply commanded them, "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:16-17) In fact, the decision to kick them out of the garden came only after they had sinned. "Then the Lord God said, 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever' —  therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life." (Genesis 3:22-24)

The Koran records the deception of Adam and Eve by the Devil as follows.

"Then Satan whispered to him saying, 'Adam, shall I point thee to the Tree of Eternity, and a Kingdom that decays [fails] not?'" (Koran 20:118)

However, the scriptures teach us that Satan approached Eve, not Adam. "And he said to the woman, 'Indeed, has God said, "You shall not eat from any tree of the garden"?'" (Genesis 3:1) Furthermore, it was not the Tree of Life that they were tempted by, for they already had permission to eat from that tree, but it was the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil that they had been forbidden to eat of its fruit. It was this tree that Eve perceived to be, "good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise." (Genesis 3:6) It was this tree that caused their fall, not the Tree of Life. Finally, there was no promise of a kingdom by Satan, either temporal or eternal. Such a temptation would have been meaningless since they already had dominion. "God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" (Genesis 1:28 NKJV) The Earth was already their kingdom and their eternal dominion.

Finally, the Koran records their expulsion from the Garden.

"Then Satan caused them to slip therefrom and brought them out of [caused their banishment from] that they were in; and We said, 'Get you all down, each [one] of you an enemy of each [to the other]; and in the earth a sojourn [dwelling place] shall be yours, and enjoyment [provision] for a time.'" (Koran 2:34)

It is unclear what is meant by "get you all down." Some post apostolic writers hinted that perhaps the Garden of Eden was not upon the Earth but in a mid-place between Heaven and Earth. Thus the idea of "getting down" and arriving "in" the Earth. It appears that Muhammad may have shared these beliefs. However, in describing the place of the garden, Earthly landmarks are used which seems to indicate that it was upon this physical Earth. "The Lord God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed... Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is Pishon; it flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. The gold of that land is good; the bdellium and the onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the whole land of Cush. The name of the third river is Tigris; it flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates." (Genesis 2:8, 10-14) This would lead us to believe that the Garden of Eden was in fact upon the Earth and not on some elevated spiritual plain.

More to come...

David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - Satan's deception

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. You can also find the previous post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The Koran records the temptation, deception, and fall of mankind. Recording it from Satan's perspective, Muhammad writes,

"Then Satan whispered to them, to reveal to them that which was hidden from them of their shameful parts [nakedness]. He said, 'Your Lord has only prohibited you from this tree lest you become angels, or lest you become immortals.'" (Koran 7:19)

The Jewish scriptures tell us nothing of the intent of Satan when he appeared to deceive Adam and Eve. However, the Jewish narrative of the event does not seem to support the claim of Muhammad that the Devil's motive was to reveal to the man and the woman that they were really naked, as if they did not know it already. It appears from the scriptures that the Devil had a two part plan, first to get the man and the woman to doubt God and then to get them to disobey God; the end result being their forfeiture of life, their separation from God, and their expulsion from the Garden. When Satan came to Eve, he asked her, "has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden'?" (Genesis 3:1) something he well know God had not said. Eve responds by correcting the Devil's error, "From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'" (Genesis 3:2-3) At this point, the Devil openly charges God with lying and lying for His own purposes and to the harm of the man and woman. "You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:4-5) The temptation was never that they would become angels for they could no more become an angel as they could become a fish. Nor was the temptation that they would live forever for they had eternal life as long as they partook of the Tree of Life which was also in the center of the garden with the Tree of  the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The temptation he used was that they would be like God in wisdom and knowledge; knowing right from wrong.

Muhammad records the actual fall and its immediate results as follows.

"So he led them on by delusion [deceits]; and when they tasted the tree, their shameful parts [nakedness] revealed to them, so they took to stitching upon themselves leaves of the Garden." (Koran 7:21)

"Let not Satan tempt you [bring you into trouble] as he brought your parents out of the Garden, stripping them of their garments [raiment] to show them their shameful parts [nakedness]." (Koran 7:25)

Muhammad implies that, though they were naked, somehow their nakedness was hidden from them. He refers to their outer raiment being stripped from them as they partook of the forbidden fruit, and that, as they discovered they were naked, they were ashamed and tried to hid their shame by covering up their nakedness.

The scriptures in no way indicate that Adam and Eve were somehow deceived about their nakedness, that they did not know they were naked, or that they had some kind of outer clothing that covered their nakedness prior to their fall. The scriptures clearly say that, "And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed." (Genesis 2:25) No mention of not knowing they were naked and no mention of any clothes to cover their nakedness. After their sin, it says that, "Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings." (Genesis 3:7)  This is a fairly enigmatic scripture and hard to understand being nearly six thousand years separated from the events which it records. For one scripture seems to indicate that they knew they were naked and were not ashamed, yet the other speaks of their eyes being opened and them seeing their nakedness. What did they see which they had not seen before? How did their perception of their nakedness change from when they saw it and were not ashamed? I think the secret lies in their action and their reaction.

The result of them seeing their nakedness was to sew fig leaves together to cover their private parts. This reminds me of another man who covered himself lest people should see him. "It came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai... that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him. So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him... When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face." (Exodus 34:29-31, 33) Paul says that Moses veiled himself, "so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away." (2 Corinthians 3:13) I believe that, in the same way, Adam and Eve, prior to their sin, shown with the glory of God and, in this glory, they were not ashamed of how God had made them, for He had made them naked and they were not ashamed. However, after their sin, this glory failed and the recognized what they lost. Their naked flesh apart from the radiant glory of God testified to them of their sin and they sought to hide their unradiant flesh lest everyone should know what they had done.

I believe this is further evidenced by their response to God when they heard Him passing by. They hid themselves and when God asked why Adam said, "I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself." (Genesis 3:10) Their response was not shame but fear. They were not ashamed that they were naked but they feared God for their nakedness testified of the sin they had committed. The end result was not, as Muhammad claimed, the revelation of their shameful parts (how can one be ashamed of what God has created) but the fear of judgment that was the result of their sin. Any shame that was there was not the shame of nakedness but the shame of sin, the shame of failure, and the shame of disobedience.

More to come...
David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - The fall of Satan

This is a continuation of a multi-post article. You can read the first post here. This is also part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

The Koran records the fall of Satan as follows.

"We created you, then We shaped you, then We said to the angels: 'Bow [prostrate] yourselves to Adam'; so they bowed [prostrated] themselves, save Iblis -- he was not of those that bowed [prostrated] themselves. Said He, 'What prevented [hindered] thee to bow thyself, when I commanded thee?' Said he, 'I am better [nobler] than he; Thou createdst me of fire, and him Thou createdst of clay.' Said He, 'Get thee down out of it; it [Paradise] is not for thee to wax proud here, so go thou forth" (Koran 7:10-12)

"And when We said to the angels, 'Bow [prostrate] yourselves to Adam'; so they bowed [prostrated] themselves, save Iblis; he was one of the jinn, and committed ungodliness [revolted] against his Lord's command [behest]." (Koran 18:48)

Iblis is the Koranic name for Satan or the Devil. We shall discuss angles, jinn, and their differences later when we look at the doctrine of Islam, but here it is unclear if Iblis was a jinn or an angle. The Koran never speaks of them in interchangeable words, so these passages are unclear and a bit contradictory as to which species of supernatural beings Satan was. Also, it speaks of him being created by fire, something which the Jewish scriptures do no corroborate. The scriptures never explicitly state if Satan was an angle, only that he had a host of angles with him. "And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him." (Revelation 12:9) As for the actual expelling fall of Satan, there are a few direct references and an indirect reference to its occurrence,

Adam records God's judgment upon the serpent for his part in deceiving Adam and Eve. "The Lord God said to the serpent, 'Because you have done this, cursed are you more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you will go, and dust you will eat all the days of your life; And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.'" (Genesis 3:14-15) This last reference is clearly a reference to Jesus' victory over Satan and that Satan would bruise His heal in leading Him to the cross but that Jesus would bruise his head by triumphing over him in His resurrection. It is unclear from this scripture if Satan was already expelled from heaven prior to this event of if this was the event that lead to his expulsion.

John records the event as seen in a vision as follows, "And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven." (Revelation 12:7-8) Again it is unclear if this was the actual first expulsion from heaven of the final casting down of him upon the earth, It clearly describes some kind of war in heaven between the devil and his angles and the angles of God, John immediately follows these words with the following, "Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night." (Revelation 12:10) This would seem to indicate that, at his throw down, Jesus had already been presented as the Christ and already had followers upon the earth. This seems like a later throw down then one that might have occurred at the beginning of time.

After the disciples returned from their mission that Jesus had sent them on, they were excited over the power they had to do miracles and the authority they had to command devils to flee. Jesus responded, "I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning." (Luke 10:18) This falling of Satan also seems to be in the time frame of Jesus' ministry upon the Earth and not at the beginning of time.

The one indirect reference to the fall of Satan is a prophesy against the King of Tyre,  "You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your covering... You were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked in the midst of the stones of fire. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in you... Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you." (Ezekiel 28:12-17) Many believe that this is also the story of Satan's fall since much in this story cannot be said of any man. However, its precise timing in history is left in question. Also, we see in other scriptures where, even though cast out of heaven, Satan still makes command appearances in heaven from time-to-time. "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, 'From where do you come?' Then Satan answered the Lord and said, 'From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.'" (Job 1:6-7)

What must be understood from these various stories is that the exact nature and timing of Satan's fall is unclear and non-distinct in the Scriptures; certainly not as distinct and sure as in the story in the Koran. The other problem with the Koranic story is the idea that angles were commanded to worship man. This is troubling for three reasons. First, because such a story is not related to us by either of the Jewish or Christian Scriptures. Secondly because we are told that God made man, "a little lower than the angles." (Hebrews 2:7) It is inconceivable for the greater to be told to worship the lesser. Thirdly, we are only ever told to worship God and no one else; not man, not an angle, nor another god but only the Lord. Why then would God command an angle to worship an man? Muhammad's story does not make since when compared with the rest of the scriptures that came before and is therefore suspect at best.

More to come...
David Robison

History - The fictional stories of Muhammad - The Judgment of Antiquity

This is part of a larger series called "The Koran from a Christian perspective." You can find other posts in this series here.

A good portion of the Koran is written to set forth the retelling of many of the well know stories from the Jewish and Christian scriptures. In the Koran we see all the familiar faces, such as, Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, Jesus, and others. However, many of the stories which we have learned from childhood have been changed and/or altered in the Koran. Not only do they contain omissions, which are to be expected, but they also contain embellishments, new details, and even contradictory narrations from the old stories we have all known and loved. The questions is, which re-telling should we trust? The record from antiquity or the modern versions as told by Muhammad? It is possible that new and corrected revelation was given to Muhammad except for two issues which will give us pause to believe the record of antiquity over the retelling of Mohammad.

First is that the recorded history we have in the Jewish and Christian scriptures were written by those who lived when the events actually occurred. While not everyone of them was a true eye-witness, they lived in the time where they could have received reliable information and a correct narrative of the events as they occurred. Even some of the most ancient writings in the Jewish scriptures were recorded in written form for the accurate preservation of the contained historical facts. In fact, there is ample evidence that the book of Genesis was merely compiled by Moses and was written by the people who are named within the book, such as, Adam, Noah, his sons, Abraham and his son, etc. Even today we have over a thousand complete documents dating well before the Birth of Moses which are still legible and readable today. Writing, in that part of the world, is very ancient  and there is reason to believe that, even the most ancient books we have received, were written by the contemporaries of the events contains in the books. For this reason, when it comes to the accuracy of the historical record, preference must be given to antiquity over fresh and new narratives that are modern in comparison.

Secondly, never before, in any of the Jewish or Christian scriptures, has God revealed to one generation the history of another generation. The fact that God would come to Muhammad and recount ancient history to him, a history that is contrary to ancient record, is new and novel and had never been done before. One could say that there is a first time for everything, but these new retelling of history are quite convenient in their interpretation as they almost always serve to justify Muhammad's position and to lend credence to him as being a prophet. As a prophet, it is one thing to predict the future for such a prophesy can easily be judged by its coming, or failing to come, to pass. However, predicting the past is nothing but self-serving as one can never prove what one cannot go back and experience. Seeing that, prior to Muhammad, God has never operated this way before leads me to require the confirmation of antiquity before I'll believe his new and diverging histories of Muhammad.

So why does history matter so much? Why should we care if the Koran gets some of its histories wrong? It is because of what the Koran claims about itself, that it is thee word-for-word translation of the Arabic Mother Book in heaven; that it is the inerrant, word-for-word, directly prophesied written record of the voice and message of God.

"By the Clear Book, behold, We have made it an Arabic Koran; haply you will [that ye may] understand and behold, it is in the Essence of the Book [a transcript of the archetypical Book], with [kept by] Us; sublime [lofty] indeed, wise [filled with wisdom]" (Koran 43:2-3)

Furthermore, the Koran claims to be fully compatible and in full agreement with all that came before it, including the Jewish and Christian scriptures. The Koran claims for itself that it came to confirm everything that came before it, not to introduce innovation.

"Yet before it [this Koran] was the Book of Moses for a model [rule] and a mercy; and this is a Book confirming [it], in Arabic tongue, to warn the evildoers, and good tidings to the good-doers." (Koran 46:11)

"In their stories [history] is surely a lesson [example] to men possessed of minds [of understanding]; it is not a tale forged [new tale of fiction], but a confirmation of what is before it [previous scriptures], and a distinguishing of every thing [explanation of all things], and a guidance, and a mercy to a people who believe." (Koran 12:111)

Herein lies the truth of the matter and the reason why historical analysis of the Koran is so important. If, in even the smallest amount or in the slightest detail, the Koran can be shown to be wrong in its historical accounts, then it is most certainly not the directly prophesied word of God and Muhammad is not a true prophet of the true God. The Koran must stand on its historical accuracy. Either it is one hundred percent accurate, or it is not the inerrant word of God as it claims to be.

As we look to judge the Koran by the histories it contains, some may find it tedious and some may find it amusing, but I hope everyone will find it interesting.

More to come...
David Robison