Chapter 2 -
Is the Koran reliable?
When it is a
question of the reliability and the contents of the Koran, many Muslims
generally do not think about this issue. They do not think deeply about the origin
of the Koran but they may be sincere in their thinking that Muhammad, the most
important prophet of Islam, received it directly from the angel of God,
Gabriel. They may also think that the original version of the Koran is in
Heaven and the current Arabian language version is only an accurate copy of
this heavenly model. For example, the next passage of the Koran is believed to
refer to this:
We have revealed
the Koran in the Arabic tongue that you may understand its meaning. It is a transcript
of the eternal book in Our keeping, sublime, and full of wisdom. (43:2-4)
In the following,
we intend to study whether the Koran that Muhammad received is, after all,
reliable as comes to its origin and especially its contents. If we study this
book that is mostly based on the authority and revelations of Muhammad, we will
see many special questions and issues that are worth while considering. We can
mention at least the following:
IS THE KORAN FROM HEAVEN?
It has been said that
Muhammad received the Koran directly from Heaven, from the angel Gabriel. This
is why the so-called night of power (of creation) (lailat al qadr) is
celebrated during the Muslims' holy month, Ramada: to remember that God then
dropped the Koran down from Heaven. That night, Muslims all around the world
repeat passages of the Koran or follow its reading, for instance on the
television or radio.
But was the Koran really received in one piece, complete from
Heaven? We will study this in the light of the next points:
The revelations lasted more
than 20 years. First of all, it
is good to note that when Muhammad received his revelations, of which the Koran
is composed, he received them over a period of approximately twenty years, up
until his death (610-632), and by no means all in one moment. The Koran is only
a collection of separate revelations that the prophet then verbally mediated in
different situations - it is the sum of these revelations - but it is wrong to
think that it was received complete, in an instant from Heaven, because 20
years cannot be the same as one night.
It was collected
after the death of Muhammad. Also the fact that these revelations were
collected from different versions into a book, the Koran, twenty years after
the death of the prophet (For example, the book Islam by Fadhlalla
Haeri says that there were at least seven different kinds of versions in the
most important tribal or regional dialects. From these, the third caliph Uthman
chose one to be the official version and ordered others to be burned. However,
different versions have been preserved as evidence of the original situation.)
indicates to us that it was not a whole book sent from Heaven but revelations
received little by little and then were collected. Also some passages of the
Koran refers to this issue that perhaps does not bother most Muslims. These
verses of the Koran say that already during the times of Muhammad some people
said that if the Koran was from Heaven, why did Muhammad not receive it all at
the same time but in pieces:
The unbelievers
ask, 'Why was the Koran not revealed to him entire in a single revelation?' We
have revealed it thus that We may strengthen your faith. We have imparted it to
you by gradual revelation. (25:32)
We have revealed
the Koran with the Truth, and with the Truth it has come down. We have sent you
forth only to proclaim good news and to give warning. We have divided the Koran
into sections that you may recite it to the people with deliberation. We have
imparted it by gradual revelation. Say, 'It is for you to believe in it or to
deny it… (17:105-107)
Changes.
If
we keep with the idea that the Koran is a perfect copy of the book that is
in Heaven and was directly sent to Muhammad, we can find some verses in
the Koran that actually speak against this and refer to changes in the book. At
least the next passages can be mentioned, which indicate how some passages of
the Koran must have been changed later on or wiped away. How can it then be
explained that the Koran was sent at a go and has always been in the same form:
If We abrogate a
verse or cause it to be forgotten, We will replace it by a better one or one
similar. Did you not know that God has power over all things. (2:106)
God abrogates and
confirms what He pleases. His is the Decree Eternal. (13:39)
When We change one
verse for another (God knows best what He reveals), they say: 'You are an
impostor.' most of them have no
knowledge. (16:101)
Also one passage,
to which the traditional knowledge refers, is Koran 53:19,20, which is called
"the Satanic Verse". Let's look at this separately:
53:19,20. The Koran 53:19,20
is a passage that is believed to have changed. According to the traditional
knowledge, these verses which speak about three goddesses worshipped by the
Arabs - Allat, al-Uzza, and Manat - originally included a reference of
these goddesses being some kind of mediators. (In other words, these verses
that Muhammad received supported turning to heathen gods.) Because of these verses, the residents
of Mecca were ready to confess that Muhammad was the Prophet. They are believed
to have been in the following form. The deleted passage has been marked in
bold:
Have you thought
on Allat and al-Uzza and on Manat, the third other? "These are high
beings and their intercession can be hoped."
This is described
also in the next quote which refers to a commentary by an Imam. From it we can
see how the passage of the Koran in question was changed (it should be noted
that the former disciples could not accept the first revelation of Muhammad and
they started to boycott him) because Muhammad soon received from the angel
a revelation to the opposite saying that the first one came from the devil. It
also indicates how the Koran is totally based on the revelations and words of
Muhammad:
Imam El-Syouty
explains the Sura 17:74 of the Koran in his commentary as follows:
"According to Muhammad, the Son of Kaab, the kinsman of Karz, the prophet
Muhammad read Sura 53 until he came to the passage which said, 'Have you seen Allat and Al-Uzza (heathen gods)... '
In this passage, the devil himself made Muhammad say that the Muslims can
worship these heathen gods and ask them for intercession. And so from the words
of Muhammad, a verse was added to the Koran.
The Prophet Muhammad was very sad because
of his words, until God encouraged him with a new one, "Also as always before, when we have sent
messenger or prophet, has Satan got put his own wishes along them, but God
wipes away it, what Satan has got mixed for them, and then he confirms his own
mark. God is knowing, wise.” (Sura 22:52.)
Because of this Sura 17:73-74 says:
"And surely they had purposed to turn you away from that which We have
revealed to you, that you should forge against Us other than that, and then
they would certainly have taken you for a friend. And had it not been that We
had already established you, you would certainly have been near to incline to
them a little;" (5)
Historical substance
If we read the
Koran, we can make some interesting observations: it mentions the same people
as the Bible. These are people like Noah, Abraham, Lot, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob,
Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Job, Saul, David, Solomon, Jesus, Mary, etc. These people
appear in the Koran and even give speeches. Actually, Muhammad was blamed for
presenting ancient stories as revelations that he had received from God:
The unbelievers
say: 'This is but a forgery of his own invention, in which others have helped
him.' Unjust is what they say and false. And they say: 'Fables of the ancients
he has written: they are dictated to him morning and evening,' (25:4,5)
This previous kind
of historical substance is also one of the Koran's biggest problems. How could
Muhammad, who lived in the 600s, have known what the people who lived centuries
earlier had said and done? How could anyone who lived much later have mediated
reliable information about people who lived much earlier than him? The Koran
mentions speaking of about fifteen historical people (Noah [example
11:25-49], Abraham [for example 2:124-133], Joseph [Sura 12], Saul
[2:249], Lot [7:80,81], Aaron [7:150], Moses [18:60-77], Solomon
[27:17-28], Job [38:41], David [38:24], Jesus [19:30-34], Mary
[19:18-20]...) - also speeches that have not been mentioned in the
Bible. It is rather remarkable that a person who lived 600-3,000 years later
could have accurately know the contents of their speeches and their lives, even though he had never seen
them or heard them speak. We may, therefore, only guess from where Muhammad
could have received this information and how reliable it is. Generally, Muslims
do not trouble their heads about these kinds of things but it is good for us to
at least question how reliable this kind of historical information is, since is
not at all based on eye-witnesses' observations or interviews.
How DOES THE Koran and THE traditional knowledge of Muslims differ from THE
Bible?
Above, we spoke
about how the historical substance of the Koran rests mainly on the revelations of
Muhammad and that the Koran also refers to many events and people that also the
Bible mentioned centuries ago.
On the other hand, we can also see some
differences between these two books. These differences can be seen in the historical
substance and the doctrine. Let us look at examples from both:
- The Koran
mentions that one of Noah's sons drowned in the Flood (11:42,43) but the Bible
says that all the sons of Noah were with him in the Ark and were saved. (Gen
6:10 and 10:1: And Noah begat three
sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth..... Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and
Japheth: and to them were sons born after the flood.)
- The Koran says
that Noah's Ark landed on a mountain called Dzudi (11:44) but the Bible says
that the Ark landed on the mountains called Ararat (Gen 8:4: And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the
seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat.).
- The
contemporaries of Noah spoke in the Koran 71:21-23 about their gods (...And
they say: By no means leave your gods, nor leave Wadd, nor Suwa; nor Yaghus,
and Yauq and Nasr.. ), which in fact were Arabian gods during the times of
Muhammad.
- Bricks rained on
Sodom according to the Koran (15:74) and not brimstone and fire (Gen 19:24: Then the LORD rained on Sodom and on Gomorrah brimstone and fire from
the LORD out of heaven).
- The Koran tells
that Abraham lived in Mecca (22:26). The Bible does not.
- The Koran
mentions that Aazar was the father of Abraham (6:74). In the Bible, his name is
Terah (Gen 11:27: Now these are the
generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot.)
- Muslims commonly believe that Abraham was about to sacrifice his son
Ishmael, even though the Bible says that the son was called Isaac (Gen 22 and
Hebrews 11:17- 19: By faith Abraham,
when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the
promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac
shall your seed be called: Accounting
that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from where also he
received him in a figure.) and even though also the Koran refers to Isaac
(see 11:69-74 and 37:100-113).
- The Koran tells that a servant of a Pharaoh was crucified (12:41)
and not hanged on a tree (Gen 40:18-22: And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation thereof: The
three baskets are three days: Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up your
head from off you, and shall hang you on a tree; and the birds shall eat your
flesh from off you. And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh's
birthday, that he made a feast to all his servants: and he lifted up the head
of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants. And he restored the chief butler to his
butlership again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand: But he hanged the
chief baker: as Joseph had interpreted to them.). This custom, crucifixion,
only came about centuries later with the Romans.
- The Koran tells that the spouse of a Pharaoh took care of Moses
(28:8,9). The Bible speaks about the daughter of a Pharaoh (Exo 2:5-10: ... And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's
daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said,
Because I drew him out of the water.).
- The Koran calls Haman a courtier of the Pharaoh (28:6,38 and 40:36),
even though he was a Persian courtier in the service of King Ahasuerus and did
not live until in the 5th century (Esther 3:1 After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman
the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all
the princes that were with him.).
- According to the
Koran, the golden calf was made by a Samaritan (20:87,88). According to the
Bible, it was made by Aaron (Gen 32). It is also known that the Samaritans did
not come to the Holy Land until centuries later because of the forced migration
from Babylonia.
- The Koran
mentions that Mary was the sister of Aaron (19:27-28) and the daughter of Amram
(3:35, 36 and 66:12), so actually she must have lived centuries earlier and be
Miriam, the sister of Aaron and Moses.
- If we think
about events in Mary's childhood (3:33-37) or Jesus talking in the cradle (3:46
and 19:29, 30) and that Jesus made birds out of clay (5:110), the Bible does
not mention any of these. Instead, we can find these same things in Apocryphal
literature (among other things the Childhood Gospel of Thomas and Arabian
Childhood Gospel) which were created much later.
- The Muslims do
not commonly believe in the death of Jesus on the cross. For example, it is
believed that the Koran 4:156-158 refers to this.
- Adoption. According to the teachings of the Koran, God does not adopt children
(5:18 and 19:88-92) and this is deemed impossible.
But if we look at the Bible, several
passages speak about the adoption that each of us can receive if we receive
Jesus Christ as our Savior and get the Spirit of God into our hearts. This can
be compared to an adoption, in which God makes us His children. In the same
way, we can also in prayer speak to God like to an earthly father and simply
tell Him our worries.
This is one of many Muslim's problem when they
pray. They
do not know God as their father, and that is why they try to approach Him from behind a great gap that
prevents them from praying trustfully. There is often unnecessary repetition in
their prayer, about which Jesus warned us. They may say Arabic sentences
according to a specific formula, even though they may not even understand this
language:
- (John 1:12) But as many as received him, to them gave he power to
become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on his name:
- (Gal 3:26) For you are all the children of God by faith in
Christ Jesus.
- (1 John 3:1) Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed on
us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world
knows us not, because it knew him not.
- (Matt 6:5-9) And when you pray, you
shall not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues
and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Truly I say to
you, They have their reward.
6 But you, when
you pray, enter into your closet, and when you have shut your door, pray to
your Father which is in secret; and your Father which sees in secret shall
reward you openly.
7 But when
you pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think
that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8 Be not you
therefore like to them: for your Father knows what things you have need of,
before you ask him.
9 After this manner therefore pray you:
Our Father which are in heaven, Hallowed be your name.
- (Matt 7:11) If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts
to your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven
give good things to them that ask him?
- (Rom 8:15) For you have not received the spirit of bondage again
to fear; but you have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry,
Abba, Father.
- Polygamy. Polygamy is
something in which the teachings of the New Testament differ from the teachings
Muhammad received (Muhammad probably had at least twelve wives and also a few
concubines). Even though some people had several wives during the Old Covenant,
polygamy is not the original will of God but His will is for a man to have only
one spouse - just like Adam and Eve. Jesus and the Apostles also confirmed
this:
- (Matt 19:4-6) And he answered and said
to them, Have you not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them
male and female,
5 And said, For
this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall join to his wife: and
they two shall be one flesh?
6 Why they are no more two, but one flesh. What
therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder.
- (1 Cor 7:1-3) Now concerning the
things whereof you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
2 Nevertheless,
to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have
her own husband.
3 Let the husband render to the wife due benevolence:
and likewise also the wife to the husband.
- (1 Tim 3:1-4) This is a true saying,
If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desires a good work.
2 A bishop
then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good
behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
3 Not given to
wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not
covetous;
4 One that rules well his own house, having his
children in subjection with all gravity
- Attitude towards
enemies. As we study the life of Muhammad and the foundation of his power, an
essential part of it was the use of the sword and killing his opponents. We can
see from historical sources that he took part in about 27 raids, sent off 38
smaller raids, and also killed several people who mocked him (the biography of
prophet Muhammad / Ibn Hisham, p. 452, 390 and 416, in Finnish). Also the Koran
that Muhammad mediated to people includes several passages that advise people
to fight against their opponents. The next quotes are some examples of this:
A sacred month for
a sacred month: sacred things too are subject to retaliation. If anyone attacks
you, attack him as he attacked you… (2:194)
Muster against
them all the men and cavalry at your command that you may strike terror into
the enemy of God and your enemy, and others besides them… (8:60)
Make war on them:
God will chastise them at your hands and humble them. He will grant you victory
over them and heal the spirit of the faithful. (9:14)
Fight against such
of those to whom the Scriptures were given as believe neither in God nor the
Last Day… (9:29)
Prophet, make war
on the unbelievers and the hypocrites and deal rigorously with them. Hell shall
be their home: an evil fate. (9:73).
But if we look at
Jesus' and His first follower's teachings, we can see that they were based on
the opposing attitude and that Jesus Himself gave His life for us (Matt
20:28: Even as the Son of man
came not to be ministered to, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom
for many.). For example, the next verses that include the own words of Jesus and
also the writings of Paul, Peter, and John, describe this. They tell us that
the teachings of Jesus were completely opposite from the teachings of Muhammad:
Jesus: (Matt 5:43-48) You have heard that it
has been said, You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.
44 But I say
to you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them
that hate you, and pray for them which spitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That you may
be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise
on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if you
love them which love you, what reward have you? do not even the publicans the
same?
47 And if you
salute your brothers only, what do you more than others? do not even the
publicans so?
48 Be you therefore perfect, even as your Father
which is in heaven is perfect.
- (Matt 26:52) Then said Jesus to him, Put up again your sword into
his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.
Apostle Paul: (Rom 12:14,17-21) Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
17 Recompense to
no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
18 If it be
possible, as much as lies in you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Dearly
beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place to wrath: for it is
written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, said the Lord.
20 Therefore
if your enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so
doing you shall heap coals of fire on his head.
21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil
with good.
Apostle Peter: (1 Peter 3:9,17) Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise
blessing; knowing that you are thereunto called, that you should inherit a
blessing.
17 For it is better, if the will of God be so,
that you suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
Apostle John: (1 John 4:18-21) There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear: because fear
has torment. He that fears is not made perfect in love.
19 We love him,
because he first loved us.
20 If a man
say, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves
not his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
21 And this
commandment have we from him, That he who loves God love his brother also.
- Zealous for God,
but not according to
knowledge. When we are looking for differences between the
teachings of the Koran and the New Testament, one of the biggest differences is
how they relate to the status of Jesus and what He has done for us. The
fundamental idea of the New Testament is that our sins have been reconciled by
Jesus Christ. This, and the divinity of Jesus, are foolishness to the Muslims,
and they normally strongly resist the idea and do not believe in it.
However, the Muslims' resistance to Jesus
and the Gospel about Him is just like that of the religious people during the
times of Jesus and Paul. They too were zealous for God but their zeal was not
based on knowledge. They also thought that their actions were from God, even
though they resisted His will and salvation. We can honestly say that these
next verses from the Bible have often been repeated throughout the history,
also as comes to many Muslims.
- (Rom 10:1-4) Brothers, my heart's
desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.
2 For I
bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
3 For they being
ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own
righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God.
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness
to every one that believes.
- (Matt 23:13) But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!
for you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for you neither go in
yourselves, neither suffer you them that are entering to go in.
- (Phil 3:18-19) (For many walk, of whom
I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the
enemies of the cross of Christ:
19 Whose end is destruction, whose
God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly
things.)
- (John 16:1-4) These things have
I spoken to you, that you should not be
offended.
2 They shall put
you out of the synagogues: yes, the time comes, that whoever kills you will
think that he does God service.
3 And these
things will they do to you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.
4 But these things have I told you, that
when the time shall come, you may remember that I told you of them. And
these things I said not to you at the beginning, because I was with you.
- Did the original
events really take place in Mecca? The traditional knowledge of
the Muslims and the Koran differ in many areas from the Bible. This also goes
to the places where the Muslims do their pilgrimage. Many Muslims sincerely
believe that the holy places of Mecca are closely connected with the lives of
Abraham, Ishmael, and Hagar but it is difficult to find evidence supporting
this from the Bible. Let's look at this in the light of some examples:
Mecca and the
temple of Caba. Many sincere Muslims have the understanding that Abraham built the
temple of Caba in Mecca together with his son Ishmael.
However, if we look at the Bible, we cannot
find any support for this. Even though Genesis, for example, mentions several
places where Abraham lived: - Ur in
Chaldea in former Mesopotamian and current Iraq, and from where Abraham
started his journey (Gen 11:31), Charran (Gen 12:4), Egypt (Gen
12:14), Bethel (Gen 13:3), Hebron (Gen 13:18), Gerar (Gen
20:1), Beersheba (Gen 22:19) - there is not even the smallest indication
of Mecca. Not even though we could assume this if Abraham really established the
temple of Caba and if it was the initial centre of the current Islamic worship. Why is not this or
Abraham's annual pilgrimages to this town, which was over 1000 km from the places
where Abraham lived, mentioned at all? Is it because these things never even took
place?
On the other hand, it is good for us to
note that as comes to Ishmael's (the son of Abraham) home, the Bible says that
Ishmael lived in the wilderness of Paran that is a part of
the current Peninsula of Sinai (see old maps) and is almost a thousand
kilometers from Mecca. For example, the next verses refer to how Ishmael lived
in the wilderness and also to how he got a wife from Egypt that was close by:
- (Gen 21:17-21) And God heard the voice
of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to
her, What ails you, Hagar? fear not; for God has heard the voice of the lad
where he is.
18 Arise, lift up
the lad, and hold him in your hand; for I will make him a great nation.
19 And God opened
her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with
water, and gave the lad drink.
20 And God was
with the lad; and he grew, and dwelled in the wilderness, and became an archer.
21 And he dwelled in the wilderness of Paran:
and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
- (Numb 10:12) And the children of Israel took their journeys out of the
wilderness of Sinai; and the cloud rested in the wilderness of Paran.
Arafat. According to
Islamic belief, Abraham was about to sacrifice Ishmael (we already noted that
the Bible says he was actually Isaac) on Mt. Arafat, which is about 11
kilometers from Mecca. However, according to Genesis, these events took place
in the Holy Land, in Moriah, which was a three days' journey from Abraham's
home, and which was obviously the same mountain in Jerusalem where Jesus gave
His life, and onto which Solomon built a temple. It is certainly the most
probable location for the events:
- (Gen 22:1-4) And it came to pass
after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said to him, Abraham: and
he said, Behold, here I am.
2 And he said,
Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and get you into
the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering on one of
the mountains which I will tell you of.
3 And Abraham
rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young
men with him, and Isaac his son, and split the wood for the burnt offering, and
rose up, and went to the place of which God had told him.
4 Then on the third day
Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
- (2 Cron 3:1) Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD at
Jerusalem in mount Moriah, where the Lord appeared to David his father,
in the place that David had prepared in the threshing floor of Ornan the
Jebusite.
The hills of Safa
and Marwa and the fountain of Zamzam are also holy places in Mecca
and places where people come to on their pilgrimage. Their history is connected
to Hagar and Ishmael getting water from there after they left Abraham.
If we look at Genesis, these events also
take place in the Holy Land, in the wilderness of Beersheba which was close to
the Dead Sea. Therefore, the Bible is not consistent with the Muslim's belief
we mentioned earlier:
- (Gen 21:14,19) And Abraham rose up
early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it to
Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed,
and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
19 And God opened
her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the
bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
- Paradise and
Heaven. When we look at the teaching of the New Testament about Paradise, it
says that it is a place where earthly things are forgotten. There will be no
more illness, hunger, suffering, sin, and no marital dealings, as Jesus said.
All of our current imperfections and pains will disappear:
- (Matt 22:29-30) Jesus answered
and said to them, You do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.
30 For in the resurrection they neither marry,
nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven.
- (Rev 21:3-8) And I heard a great
voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he
will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be
with them, and be their God.
4 And God shall
wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death,
neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the
former things are passed away.
5 And he
that sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said to me, Write: for these words
are true and faithful.
6 And he said to
me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will
give to him that is thirsty of the fountain of the water of life freely.
7 He that
overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my
son.
8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the
abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and
all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and
brimstone: which is the second death.
However, if we
look at the revelation Muhammad received about Heaven, it is completely
different from the above-mentioned description. According to Muhammad, Heaven
is a place where things that are forbidden on Earth become allowed, mainly
meaning women and wine (these are probably things that many suicide bombers
believe to experience after death, even though the last verse of the
above-mentioned Bible passages, for example, indicated that murderers will not
inherit the kingdom of God - they must go to Hell.). There people will also
have spouses just like on Earth and they will be lying on their couches,
dressed in rich silks and fine brocade:
As for the
righteous, they shall be lodged in peace together amidst gardens and fountains,
arrayed in rich silks and fine brocade. Yes, and We shall wed them to dark-eyed
houris (44:51-54)
They shall recline
on couches lined with thick brocade… Therein are bashful virgins whom neither
man nor jinnee will have touched before… Virgins as fair as corals and rubies.
(55:54-58)
On that day the
heirs of Paradise will be busy with their joys. Together with their spouses,
they shall recline in shady groves upon soft couches. They shall have fruits
therein, and all that they desire. (36:55-57)
They shall recline
on couches ranged in rows. To dark-eyed houris We shall wed them. (52:20)
As
for the righteous, they shall surely triumph. Theirs shall be gardens and
vineyards, and high-bosomed maidens for companions: a truly overflowing cup.
(78:31-34)
The righteous will
surely dwell in bliss. Reclining upon soft couches they will gaze around them:
and in their faces you shall mark the glow of joy. They shall be given a pure
wine to drink, securely sealed, whose very dregs are musk (for this let all men
emulously strive). (83:22-26)
