Friday Notes From The Quran (9/9/2022) : The 'Offering' Of Ismail Vs The Aqeedat of Yitzhak (Isaac).

 

This piece can be read by Christians (and Jews as well) because the topic is common to Christianity and Judaism.

This is my Friday Notes from the Quran for today (Friday 9/9/2022) but the subject matter ie the "sacrificial offering" by Abraham (Nabi ibrahim) of his son  is relevant to Muslims, Christians and Jews. 

The Jews and Christians say that Abraham offered his son Isaac (Yitzhak in Hebrew and Ishaq in Arabic) as a 'sacrificial offering'. 

The Quran indicates that it was Abraham's other son Ishmael (Yishma'el in Hebrew and Ismail in Arabic) who was the intended 'offering'. 

Before that some background from the Hebrew Bible (Jewish Bible).

The Jewish concept of aqeeda.

The Hebrew word ‘aqeeda’ comes from the Bible, in this case the Hebrew Bible.  In English it is spelt as ‘aqeedah’ or ‘akedah’. 

The Jewish concept of aqeeda / akedah / aqedah  as creed or faith is found in Judaism. And it is closely linked to the incident of Abraham offering his son as a sacrificial offering - as an act of Abraham's own faith.  Here are some Jewish references:

"AKEDAH (ʿAqedah; Hebrew. הָדֵקֲע, lit. "binding (of Isaac)"), the Pentateuchal narrative (Gen. 22:1–19) describing God's command to *Abraham to offer *Isaac, the son of his old age, as a sacrifice. Obedient to the command, Abraham takes Isaac to the place of sacrifice and binds him (va-ya'akod*, Gen. 22:9, a word found nowhere else in the Bible in the active, conjugative form) on the altar. The angel of the Lord then bids Abraham to stay his hand and a ram is offered in Isaac's stead. *The Akedah became in Jewish thought the supreme example of self-sacrifice* in obedience to God's will and the symbol of Jewish martyrdom throughout the ages.

In other Jewish references:

“The Binding of Isaac, known in Hebrew as the Akedah, is one of the best-known stories in the Bible. In it, God orders Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, on Mount Moriah. Abraham agrees, but then is stopped at the last minute when God sends an angel who tells him to sacrifice a ram instead. The story, in Genesis 22:1-19, is traditionally read on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, and references to it appear throughout the liturgy.  Even the shofar (ram’s horn) blown on the holiday is said to be a reminder of the Akedah, and how Isaac was spared.”

The Oxford Companion to the Bible talks about 'aqeedah'.  Aqeedah: the Hebrew word for 'binding', and the common designation for Genesis 22:1-19 in which God tests Abraham by commanding that he sacrifices his son Isaac.  Abraham "binds" Isaac” (verse 9). 

The Quran does not mention anything about ‘aqeedah’ or that it should refer to religious faith, belief or a creed. 

In the Quran there are occurrences of linguistic derivatives like ‘uqdah’ referring to ‘the knot of marriage’ (2:235) or ‘aqada’ referring to upholding the proper sharing of inheritances (4:33) but there is no such word as ‘aqeedah’ in the Koran referring to a creed or faith.

Now here are the relevant verses from Surah 37 in the Quran which say that Isaac (Ishaq) was born LATER, AFTER the event of the so called 'sacrificial offering' by Abraham of his other son.

Surah 37:101 to 37:113

37:101 Then we gave him good news of the birth of a good son
(Fa-bash-shar-naa-hu bi-ghulaamin haleemin) 

37:102 When he grew enough to work with him, he said, "My son, I see in a dream that I am sacrificing you. What do you think?" He said, "O my father, do what you are commanded to do. You will find me, if Allah wills it, patient." 

37:103 They both submitted, and he put his forehead down (to sacrifice him). 

37:104 We called him: "O Abraham.  

37:105 "You have believed the dream." We thus reward the righteous. 

37:106 That was an exacting test indeed. 

37:107 We ransomed him by substituting an animal sacrifice.  

37:108 And we preserved his history for subsequent generations. 

37:109 Peace be upon Abraham.  

37:110 We thus reward the righteous.  

37:111 He is one of our believing servants. 

37:112 And then we gave him the good news about the birth of Isaac, to be one of the righteous prophets 
(Wa-bash-shar-naahu bi-ISHAAQA nabiyyan min-al-saliheena) 

37:113 We blessed him and Isaac (Wa-baarak-naa alayhi wa'ala ISHAAQA). Among their descendants, some are righteous, and some are wicked transgressors. 

In the very beginning of this episode here, in Sura 37:101 above, Abraham was given the good news (bash-shar-naa-hu) of the birth of a good son (ghulaamin haleemin). 

Then in the very next verse 37:102 when this son has grown older,  Abraham tells his son about his dream where he would have to sacrifice him.  Thereafter until Sura 37:111 the story goes on about the episode of the sacrifice.  

Then AFTER THIS EPISODE OF THE SACRIFICE, in the next verse Sura 37:112 Abraham again received more good news (wa-bash-shra-naahu) about the birth of yet another son who is also mentioned by name ie Isaac (Ishaq). 

So quite clearly on two different occassions, in two different verses above, Abraham was given good news of the birth of TWO DIFFERENT sons. 

The second birth of a son (who is mentioned by name as Isaac / Ishaq) in Surah 37:112 - happened AFTER the episode of the sacrificial offering.

Most certainly then the son who was born first, whose birth is mentioned earlier in Surah 37:101 WAS NOT ISAAC.  

And in Surah 37:102 it was that earlier born son who went through that 'sacrificial offering' episode with Abraham. IT WAS NOT ISAAC (ISHAQ).

In the Quran only two sons of Abraham are mentioned Ishmael (Ismail) and Isaac (Ishaq). This is as per the narrative in the Quran.  

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.