The Convergence of Judaism and Islam: Religious, Scientific, and Cultural Dimensions

4. The Quran’s Depiction of Abraham in Light of the Hebrew Bible and Midrash

4 The Quran’s Depiction of Abraham in Light of the Hebrew Bible and Midrash Bat-Sheva Garsiel The Quran is a collection of Muhammad’s teachings, aimed at inculcating the belief in one God and presenting its principles to the nascent Muslim community (2:185). The Quran integrates figures, among them biblical ones, into its suras in order to reinforce the subject under discussion and to exemplify it.1 Unlike the Bible, therefore, whose stories appear in more or less chronological order, the Quranic figures may appear in one sura and reappear in another in varied sermons or in other contexts. Consequently , those who wish to discuss a figure in the Quran must glean information from different suras in which the character appears and construct him like a mosaic, fitting together relevant depictions and characterizations from various texts. Abraham and Moses are the most important among the early prophets to appear in the Quran. The Quran viewed Moses as the prophet sent to transmit a new religion to his people and Abraham as the father and founder of Islam. Muhammad is regarded as the conglomerate character of both of them, as the one continuing their mission and sealing the chain of all prophets. Similarities between the depiction of Abraham in the early Jewish traditions and its parallels in the Quran have been noticed by scholars.2 Earlier scholars, however, did not fully capture the wide scope of the parallels; neither did they delve into the reasons for the changes wrought by the Quran in its adaptations. This study examines the image of Abraham in the Quran in comparison with the wide range of Jewish sources that preceded the Quran, including 46 r Bat-Sheva Garsiel midrashic exegeses, and discusses the major differences between these various traditions. Abraham: The Prophet, the First Muslim, and the Founder of Islam Abraham’s image in the Quran underwent developments and modifications . At the onset of Muhammad’s Mecca period, Abraham was considered an ordinary prophet, appearing generally in the list of prophets and messengers.3 But at the close of the Mecca period and during the Medina period, when Muhammad realized that the Jews were not willing to convert to Islam, he changed his approach. He ceased presenting Islam as a stage parallel to but more developed than Judaism, and instead he spoke of Islam as a religion more ancient than and completely separate from Judaism. In line with this concept, the image of Abraham in the later suras was transformed into that of the first Muslim, the person who laid the earliest foundations of Islam.4 One of the reasons for which Abraham was selected as the first Muslim is that his persona was famous and revered in all of the monotheistic religions. This is reflected in the Quran, which asks: “People of the book, why do you dispute concerning Abraham? The Torah was not sent down, neither was the Gospel, but after him” (3:65).5 According to this concept, “Abraham in truth was not a Jew, neither a Christian; but he was a Muslim , a H anif. Certainly he was never one of the idolaters.”6 The term H anif attributed to Abraham describes a man who believes in only one God. At that time, the new religion was not yet called “Islam.” The Quran used the term islam to refer to submission and obedience to God and acceptance of His rulership. The Quran thus coined a new term, one found neither in the Hebrew Bible nor in the New Testament. At first glance, the Quran’s description of Abraham seems to be a modification of some earlier Jewish traditions, with an added emphasis laid on Abraham’s being a Muslim, that is, on his obedience and submissiveness to God. There is some basis in Genesis 17:1 for such a description when the Lord said to Abraham: “Walk in My ways and be blameless,” which seems to allude to a person who follows the guidance of God and walks in His ways. Similarly, there are comments in early midrashim (postbiblical homiletic commentaries on biblical texts), emphasizing Abraham’s submissiveness to God. One midrash states that “even when he did not find a place to bury Sarah, Abraham did not question God’s ways.”7 That The Quran’s Depiction of Abraham in Light of the Hebrew Bible and Midrash r 47 is, Abraham accepted God’s decree...