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LESSON TWO: THE QURAN'S TESTIMONY ABOUT PROPHETS AND SIN
We shall be looking in this study at what the Quran says about the different prophets Allah sent into the world to turn mankind from disobedience and evil, and to guide them in His way. We shall try to understand in what ways they were similar to all other men, and in what ways they differed. Specifically, did they commit any acts of disobedience and sin, or were they free from sin and the resulting need for repentance? We shall look first at the evidence of the Quran for each prophet, and then at the previous scriptures.
1. The prophet Adam (pbuh)
a. 2:35-37 - We said: "O Adam! Dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden; and eat of the bountiful things therein as (where and when) ye will; but approach not this tree, or ye run into harm and transgression." Then did Satan make them slip from the (garden), and get them out of the state (of felicity) in which they had been. We said: "Get ye down, all (ye people), with enmity between yourselves. On earth will be your dwelling-place and your means of livelihood - for a time." Then learnt Adam from his Lord words of inspiration, and his Lord Turned towards him; for He is Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.
Who led Adam into disobedience?
b. 7:19-23 - "O Adam! Dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden, and enjoy (its good things) as ye wish: but approach not this tree, or ye run into harm and transgression." Then began Satan to whisper suggestions to them, bringing openly before their minds all their shame that was hidden from them (before): he said: "Your Lord only forbade you this tree, lest ye should become angels or such beings as live for ever." And he swore to them both, that he was their sincere adviser. So by deceit he brought about their fall: when they tasted of the tree, their shame became manifest to them, and they began to sew together the leaves of the garden over their bodies. And their Lord called unto them: "Did I not forbid you that tree, and tell you that Satan was an avowed enemy unto you?" They said: "Our Lord! We have wronged our own souls: If thou forgive us not and bestow not upon us Thy Mercy, we shall certainly be lost."
1) What was Allah's one command to Adam and ?
2) Did they obey this one command?
3)What did they do?
c. 20:115-122 - We had already, beforehand, taken the covenant of Adam, but he forgot: and We found on his part no firm resolve. When We said to the angels, "Prostrate yourselves to Adam", they prostrated themselves, but not Iblis: he refused. Then We said: "O Adam! Verily, this is an enemy to thee and thy wife: so let him not get you both out of the Garden, so that thou art landed in misery. "There is therein (enough provision) for thee not to go hungry nor to go naked, "Nor to suffer from thirst, nor from the sun's heat." But Satan whispered evil to him: he said, "O Adam! shall I lead thee to the Tree of Eternity and to a kingdom that never decays?" In the result, they both ate of the tree, and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey his Lord, and allow himself to be seduced. But his Lord chose him (for His Grace): He turned to him, and gave him Guidance.
How did Adam and try to cover their shame?
d. Read Genesis 2:16 and 3:1-19 -- And the LORD Allah commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD Allah
had made.
2 He said to the woman, "Did Allah really say, `You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but
Allah did say, `You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' "
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For Allah knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like
Allah, knowing good and evil."
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD Allah as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD
Allah among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD Allah called to the man, "Where are you?"
10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."
11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me--she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."
13 Then the LORD Allah said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
14 So the LORD Allah said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock
and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust
all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
16 To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you." 17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, `You must not eat of it,'
"Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it
all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."
1) What command did Adam and disobey?
2) How did they try to cover their shame?
3) In verse 21 (The LORD Allah made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.), what did Allah, in His mercy, do for them?
4) What do you think the significance of verse 15 is?
2. The prophet (pbuh)
a. 11:47 - said: "O my Lord! I do seek refuge with Thee, lest I ask
Thee for that of which I have no knowledge. And unless thou forgive me and
have Mercy on me, I should indeed be lost!"
despairs of hope unless Allah does what?
b. 71:26-28 - And , said: "O my Lord! Leave not of the Unbelievers, a single one on earth! "For, if Thou dost leave (any of) them,
they will but mislead Thy devotees, and they will breed none but wicked ungrateful ones. "O my Lord! Forgive me, my parents, all who enter my house in
Faith, and (all) believing men and believing women: and to the wrong-doers
grant Thou no increase but in perdition!"
3. The prophet (pbuh)
a. 14:41 - "O our Lord! Cover (us) with Thy Forgiveness - me, my parents,
and (all) Believers, on the Day that the Reckoning will be established!
b. 26:82 - "And who, I hope, will forgive me my faults on the day of Judgment.
1) Who is speaking here (see vs. 70 And rehearse to them (something of)
's story.)?
2) What is 's request?
c. Read Genesis 20:1-13 - Now moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there
said of his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." Then Abimelech king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.
3 But Allah came to Abimelech in a dream one night and said to him, "You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman."
:4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her, so he said, "Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Did he not say to me, `She is my sister,' and didn't she also say, `He is my brother'? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands."
6 Then Allah said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all yours will die."
8 Early the next morning Abimelech summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelech called
in and said, "What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should not be done." 10 And Abimelech asked
, "What was your reason for doing this?"
11 replied, "I said to myself, `There is surely no fear of Allah in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.' 12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when
Allah had me wander from my father's household, I said to her, `This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, "He is my brother." ' "
1) told Abimelech that Sarah was related to him in what way?
2) In reality he kept Abimelech ignorant of the most important relationship. What was that?
3) Why did not tell Abimelech that?
4. The prophet (pbuh)
a. 28:15,16 - And he entered the city at a time when its people were not
watching: and he found there two men fighting,- one of his own religion, and the other, of his foes. Now the man of his own religion appealed to him
against his foe, and struck him with his fist and made an end of him.
He said: "This is a work of Evil (Satan): for he is an enemy that manifestly misleads!" He prayed: "O my Lord! I have indeed wronged my soul! Do Thou
then forgive me!" So (Allah) forgave him: for He is the Oft-Forgiving, Most
Merciful.
1) How did stop two men's fighting?
2) How did he describe it? It was whose doing?
3) Because of his actions, what did request of Allah?
b. Read Exodus 2:11-14 - One day, after had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. 12 Glancing this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13 The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, "Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?"
14 The man said, "Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?" Then
was afraid and thought, "What I did must have become known."
How much agreement is there between this and the above Quran passage?
5. The prophet (pbuh)
a. 37:139-144 - So also was among those sent (by Us). When he ran away (like a slave from captivity) to the ship
(fully) laden, He (agreed to) cast lots, and he was condemned: Then the big Fish did swallow him,
and he had done acts worthy of blame. Had it not been that he (repented and) glorified
Allah, He would certainly have remained inside the Fish till
the Day of Resurrection.
1) What did do in vs. 40?
2) What was the result of that action?
b. Read chapter one - The word of Allah came to son of Amittai: 2 "Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me."
3 But ran away from Allah and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from
Allah. 4 Then Allah sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship.
But had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, "How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us, and we will not perish."
7 Then the sailors said to each other, "Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity." They cast lots and the lot fell on
. 8 So they asked him, "Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you?"
9 He answered, "I am a Hebrew and I worship Allah, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land."
10 This terrified them and they asked, "What have you done?" (They knew he was running away from
Allah, because he had already told them so.) 11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, "What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?"
12 "Pick me up and throw me into the sea," he replied, "and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you."
13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried to
Allah, "O LORD, please do not let us die for taking this man's life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, O LORD, have done as you pleased." 15 Then they took
and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. 16 At this the men greatly feared
Allah, and they offered a sacrifice to Allah and made vows to him. 17 But Allah
provided a great fish to swallow , and was inside the fish three days and three nights.
1) What command did Allah give in vs. 2?
2) How did respond in vs. 3?
3) Describe briefly what happened next both to the ship and to ?
6. The prophet (pbuh)
a. 38:17-26 - Have patience at what they say, and remember our servant
, the man of strength: for he ever turned (in repentance to Allah). It was We that made the hills declare, in unison with him, Our
Praises, at eventide and at break of day, And the birds gathered (in assemblies): all
with him did turn (to Allah). We strengthened his kingdom, and gave him wisdom and sound
judgment in speech and decision. Has the Story of the Disputants reached thee? Behold, they
climbed over the wall of the private chamber; When they entered the presence of
, and he was terrified
of them, they said: "Fear not: we are two disputants, one of whom has wronged the other: Decide now between us with truth, and treat us not
with injustice, but guide us to the even Path.. "This man is my brother: He has nine and ninety ewes, and I
have (but) one: Yet he says, 'commit her to my care,' and is (moreover) harsh to me in speech."
() said: "He has undoubtedly wronged thee in demanding thy (single) ewe to be added to his (flock of) ewes: truly many are the
partners (in business) who wrong each other: Not so do those who believe and work deeds of
righteousness, and how few are they?"...and gathered that We had tried him: he asked forgiveness of his Lord, fell
down, bowing (in prostration), and turned (to Allah in repentance). So We forgave him this (lapse): he enjoyed, indeed, a Near
Approach to Us, and a beautiful place of (Final) Return. O ! We did indeed make thee a vicegerent on earth: so
judge thou between men in truth (and justice): Nor follow thou the lusts (of thy heart), for they will mislead thee from the Path of
Allah: for those who wander astray from the Path of Allah, is a Penalty Grievous, for that
they forget the Day of Account.
1) At the beginning of the above passage, is commended for continually doing what?
2) What is 's response to the story of the two sheep owners?
b. Read 2 Samuel 11:1 to 12:13 - In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war,
sent Joab out with the king's men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But
remained in Jerusalem. 2 One evening got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful,
3 and sent someone to find out about her. The man said, "Isn't this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite?"
4 Then sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (She had purified herself from her uncleanness.) Then [1] she went back home.
5 The woman conceived and sent word to , saying, "I am pregnant."
6 So sent this word to Joab: "Send me Uriah the Hittite." And Joab sent him to
. 7 When Uriah came to him, asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going.
8 Then said to Uriah, "Go down to your house and wash your feet." So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him.
9 But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace with all his master's servants and did not go down to his house.
10 When was told, "Uriah did not go home," he asked him, "Haven't you just come from a distance? Why didn't you go home?"
11 Uriah said to , "The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my master Joab and my lord's men are camped in the open fields. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and lie with my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!"
12 Then said to him, "Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back." So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.
13 At 's invitation, he ate and drank with him, and made him drunk. But in the evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his master's servants; he did not go home.
14 In the morning wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah.
15 In it he wrote, "Put Uriah in the front line where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die."
16 So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were.
17 When the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some of the men in
's army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite died. 18 Joab sent
a full account of the battle. 19 He instructed the messenger: "When you have finished giving the king this account of the battle,
20 the king's anger may flare up, and he may ask you, `Why did you get so close to the city to fight? Didn't you know they would shoot arrows from the wall?
21 Who killed Abimelech son of Jerub-Besheth [2] ? Didn't a woman throw an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you get so close to the wall?' If he asks you this, then say to him, `Also, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.'"
22 The messenger set out, and when he arrived he told everything Joab had sent him to say.
23 The messenger said to , "The men overpowered us and came out against us in the open, but we drove them back to the entrance to the city gate.
24 Then the archers shot arrows at your servants from the wall, and some of the king's men died. Moreover, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead."
25 told the messenger, "Say this to Joab: `Don't let this upset you; the sword devours one as well as another. Press the attack against the city and destroy it.' Say this to encourage Joab."
26 When Uriah's wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him.
27 After the time of mourning was over, had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing
had done displeased Allah. 1 Allah sent Nathan to . When he came to him, he said, "There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor.
2 The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, 3 but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.
4 "Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him."
5 burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, "As surely as
Allah lives, the man who did this deserves to die! 6 He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity."
7 Then Nathan said to , "You are the man! This is what Allah, the God of Israel, says: `I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of .
8 I gave your master's house to you, and your master's wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more.
9 Why did you despise the word of Allah by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.
10 Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.'
11 "This is what Allah says: `Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight.
12 You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.'"
13 Then said to Nathan, "I have sinned against Allah." Nathan replied,
"Allah has taken away your sin. You are not going to die.
1) In chapter 11, what two serious sins is guilty of?
2) What prophet does Allah use to convict him of his sin?
3) Why is convicted by the story of the two sheep owners?
4) What is 's final response in 2 Samuel 12:13?
7. The prophet (pbuh)
a. 38:30-35 - And We bestowed on , . How excellent a slave! Lo!
he was ever turning in repentance (toward Allah). When there were shown to him at eventide lightfooted coursers And he said: Lo! I have preferred the good things (of the
world) to the remembrance of my Lord; till they were taken out of sight behind the curtain. (Then he said): Bring them back to me, and fell to slashing
(with his sword their) legs and necks. And verily We tried , and set upon his throne a (mere)
body. Then did he repent. He said: My Lord! Forgive me and bestow on me sovereignty such
as shall not belong to any after me. Lo! Thou art the Bestower.
What is said to do in verses 30, 34, and 35?
b) Read 1 Kings 11:1-13 - King , however, loved many foreign women besides 's daughter--Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. 2 They were from nations about which
Allah had told the Israelites, "You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods." Nevertheless,
held fast to them in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. 4 As
grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to
Allah his God, as the heart of his father had been. 5 He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 So
did evil in the eyes of Allah; he did not follow Allah completely, as
his father had done. 7 On a hill east of Jerusalem, built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.
9 Allah became angry with because his heart had turned away from Allah, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10 Although he had forbidden
to follow other gods, did not keep Allah's command. 11 So
Allah said to , "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. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of
your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of
my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."
1) What had Allah commanded about marrying women from other nations?
2) What did do?
3) What did 's marriages cause him to do?
4) How did Allah respond to 's disobedience?
8. The prophet Muhammad (pbuh)
a. 4:105,106 - Lo! We reveal unto thee the Scripture with the truth, that
thou mayst judge between mankind by that which Allah showeth thee. And be not thou a pleader for the treacherous; And seek forgiveness of Allah. Lo! Allah is ever Forgiving,
Merciful.
b. 40:55 - Then have patience (O Muhammad). Lo! The promise of Allah is true. And ask forgiveness of thy sin, and hymn the praise of thy Lord at
fall of night and in the early hours.
c. 47:19 - So know (O Muhammad) that there is no God save Allah, and ask forgiveness for thy sin and for believing men and believing women. Allah
knoweth (both) your place of turmoil and your place of rest.
d. 48:1,2 - Lo! We have given thee (O Muhammad) a signal victory, That Allah may forgive thee of thy sin that which is past and
that which is to come, and may perfect His favour unto thee, and may guide
thee on a right path,
9. Isa . This is the one prophet about whom the Quran mentions no sin, nor any need for repentance. Rather, he is called holy.
a. 3:46 - He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood,
and he is of the righteous.
In this passage, Isa is described as being among what group?
b. 19:19 - He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow
on thee a faultless son.
What kind of a son is promised to in this passage?
c. John 8:46 - Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me?
What was Isa's challenge to the disbelieving Jews of his day?
d. Hebrews 4:15 - For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin.
1) How much was Isa tempted?
2) Did he ever give in to that temptation?
e. 1 Peter 3:18 - For Masih (Isa) died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to
Allah. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit,
1) How is Isa described here as different from other men?
2) What did this difference allow him to do for other men?
10. Concerning the prophets mentioned above, how much agreement do you observe between the Quran and the previous Scriptures?
11. What does the average person believe about Allah's prophets - were they sinners or sinless?
12. How do you think people form their opinion about the condition of the prophets? Does their thinking come from Quran or from where?
13. How do you feel others can best be helped to understand that, except for
Isa , the prophets were men with failings and sin like the rest of mankind?
14. Of what real importance is it whether the prophets were sinners or sinless? (Think of such things as the ability to intercede for others or their own need for a savior.)
The fact that the prophets were men who underwent the same temptations and testings as we today does not diminish their importance to us nor the respect they deserve. In fact, it increases their importance. If they were incapable of sin, then they provide little example or hope for us today as we daily deal with the same sins of pride, anger, jealousy, etc. However, because they endured the same temptations and sometimes succumbed, they provide us with a tremendous example. Like us, they too sinned. However, they consistently turned back to Allah in humble repentance and faith. And Allah, in His great mercy, forgave them.
We need to learn what the prophets exemplified. We need to learn to live our lives in such a close relationship to Allah that any sin we commit is quickly recognized for what it is and repented of. If we do so, we can be assured of the same forgiveness and acceptance from Allah as the prophets of old experienced.
PRAISE BE TO THE GOD OF ALL MERCY WHO KNOWS OUR SINFULNESS YET FORGIVES THE HUMBLE REPENTANT SINNER
Spend some time in prayer praising Allah, the Merciful and Gracious One, who always stands ready to forgive the contrite sinner. Meditate on your own life and ask Allah's forgiveness for any sins or disobedience that He might reveal to you.
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