The story of Abraham is told in the Qur’an at different places. Among what Allah says:
“They said: ‘Build for him a structure (i.e. big furnace), and throw him into the blazing fire.’ So, they plotted against him, but We made them the lowest. And he said: ‘I am going to my Lord, He will guide me. O, My Lord! Bless me with a righteous offspring.’ So We gave him tidings of a forbearing son (i.e. Ishmael). And when he (the boy) reached an age in which he could strive with him, he (Abraham) said: ‘O my son, I have seen in a dream (i.e. vision) that I am slaughtering you, so consider, what is your opinion?’ He said: ‘O father! Do that which you are commanded to do, you shall find me with Allah’s willing one of those who endure patiently.’ So, when they had both submitted (to Allah’s will), and he (Abraham) laid him upon his forehead, We called out to him: ‘O Abraham: You have (already) fulfilled the vision. Lo! thus do We reward the good. Lo! that verily was a clear test. And We redeemed him with a great sacrifice. And We left for him (a word of praise) among the later people: ‘Peace be upon Abraham.’ Thus do We reward the good. Lo! he is one of Our believing servants. And We gave him tidings of the birth of Isaac, a prophet among the righteous. And We blessed him and Isaac. And of their seed are some who do good, and some who plainly wrong themselves” [The Qur’an (37:97-113)].

Hence, the Qur’an tells us that Abraham’s first born son “Ishmael,” the son who was ever at a time Abraham’s “only son”, was the one whom Abraham was ordered to sacrifice and not Isaac. This clears up the dilemma of the first point stated in the previous post, and now makes sense. Ishmael was a blessing for Abraham after 86 years of having no children. Consequently, Abraham loved him and became attached to him so much. It was only then that Allah tried Abraham with a test of faith. The main purpose was to teach him that his love for his Lord must not be surpassed by love to any of his Lord’s endowments. It was a tribulation through which Allah set Abraham as an example for all faithful believers through the ages, and Abraham became their spiritual father till the end of time. Actually, the name Abraham literally means “father of many.” Hence, unlike the Bible’s story, the Qur’an tells us that Abraham saw in a dream that he was slaughtering his only son, so when Ishmael reached the age in which he can strive along with his father, Abraham told him of his vision, and Ishmael responded saying that they should do as Allah orders.

The Islamic traditions explain that on this day, satan tried to seduce Abraham, Hagar and Ishmael from following Allah’s orders, but whenever he came to one of them in a human form, that one sought Allah’s refuge from his seduction, and threw him with stones driving him away. This tradition is still followed on that same day every year in the ceremonies of the Muslims’ pilgrimage at the same place where the events occurred. The place is called Menah. The tradition is revived in a symbolic way of course. It’s a reminder of the day when satan failed to seduce a father from slaughtering his only son, the son with whom he was blessed after a lifetime. Then satan failed to seduce a mother from escaping away with her only son from a father who was going to slaughter him leaving her totally alone without anyone to protect and take care of her. Finally, satan failed to seduce even the young boy, or make him run away in fear for his life. Abraham, Hagar, and Ishmael had set for all mankind the greatest example of full submission and respect to Allah’s orders. Unfortunately, many people today would stand incapable of realizing how magnificent that day was throughout the human history; a day in which mankind’s faith was tested to the farthest limits, and ended up triumphant.

As a reward for this family’s incredible faith, Allah sent down the archangel Gabriel to redeem Ishmael with a huge magnificent ram that was slaughtered in his stead, and Abraham was given glad tidings of another righteous son who will also become a great prophet, namely Isaac. This was how Abraham deserved to become the father of many great nations, with whom Allah kept His everlasting covenant. May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, and all of the prophets, the most faithful and most patient humans who ever walked the surface of this earth. These events are also celebrated every year by Muslims on the day known in the west as the Greater Bairam.

Now for the complete story and to clear the remaining gaps discussed in the previous post, we need to go back to the beginning, and read what Bukhari recorded about Ishmael’s story as taught by Prophet Muhammad. Companion Ibn-’Abbās  said:

“The first lady to use a girdle was the mother of Ishmael. She used a girdle so that she might hide her tracks from Sarah. Abraham brought her and her son Ishmael while she was suckling him, to a place near the location of Ka’bah, under a tree on the spot of Zamzam. During those days, no one was living yet in Makkah, nor was there any water; so he made them sit over there and placed near them a leather bag containing some dates, and a water-skin containing some water, then he set-out homewards. Ishmael’s mother ran after him saying: ‘O Abraham! Where are you going, leaving us in this (barren) valley where there are no people whose company we may enjoy, nor is there anything?’ She continued to ask him, but he did not look back at her. So then she asked him: ‘Has Allah ordered you to do so?’
He said: ‘Yes’
She said: ‘Then He will not waste us,’ and returned while Abraham proceeded onwards. On reaching a place where she could not see him, he faced the place of the sacred mosque, raised both hands, and invoked Allah saying: ‘O Lord! I have left part of me to dwell in a (barren) valley, near the place of Your sacred mosque, that they may offer prayers perfectly and worship you alone. So fill some hearts among the people with love towards them, and provide them with provisions, that they may give thanks continuously.’

Ishmael’s mother continued to give suckling to Ishmael while she drank from the only water she had. When the water had all been used up, she became thirsty and her child also became thirsty. Seeing her baby twisting in agony, she got up searching for someone who could help. She saw that the hill of Safa was the nearest hill to her on that spot. She ascended it and started looking at the valley hoping to see anyone, but no one was there. So she descended from Safa, tucked up her robe and ran in the valley in distress, till she crossed it and reached Marwah hill. She ascended it as well and looked around, but she could not see anybody. She repeated that (running between Safa and Marwah mountains) seven times, hoping that she would find any person to help.
Prophet Muhammad explained that this was the source of the tradition which Muslims follow by walking between the two mountains (i.e. Safa and Marwah). When Lady hagar reached Marwah hill the last time, she heard a voice, so she listened attentively, she heard the voice again, so she shouted loudly: ‘O, whoever you may be! You have made me hear your voice, have you got something to help me with?’ And behold! She saw the archangel at the place of Zamzam, in the form of a man hitting the earth with his heel, till water flowed from that place. She used the sand to make something like a basin around it with her hands. She drank and filled her water skin.
The Prophet added: May Allah bestow Mercy on Ishmael’s mother! Had she let Zamzam flow without trying to control it, it would have been a huge stream flowing on the surface of the earth. The Prophet further added: She drank and suckled her child. The angel said to her: ‘Don’t be afraid of being forgotten, for this is the place of the House of Allah which will be built by this boy and his father. Allah never wastes its inhabitants.’

Lady Hagar stayed in that place till some people from the tribe of Jurhum (i.e. Arabs from Yemen) passed by her and her baby as they were coming through the way of Kada’ (i.e. a desert road in Arabia). They landed in the lower part of Makkah where they saw a bird whose species have the habit of flying around water and not leaving it. They said: “This bird must be flying around water, though we know that there is no water in this valley.” They dispatched a man who discovered the source of the water, and they approached it. Lady Hagar was sitting beside the water spring. So they asked her, ‘Do you allow us to stay with you?’ She replied, ‘Yes, but you will have no right to possess the water.’ They agreed to that. Lady Hagar was pleased with the whole situation as she enjoyed the company of people. So, they settled there, and later on they sent for their families who came and settled with them. With time, some families became permanent residents of the place. Ishmael grew and learnt Arabic from them, his virtues caused them to love and admire him so much, so when he reached the age of puberty they made him marry a woman from among them. Later on, after she had witnessed her son grow, Lady Hagar died.” [Recorded By Bukhari].

From the above narration, we learned that when Abraham took Lady Hagar and her son Ishmael to Makkah (i.e. the Bible calls it Paran, this was discussed in details in my previous post Locating Paran), Ishmael was still a baby, not even weaned yet, which now makes sense and explains the previous verses of Genesis. Abraham was ordered to do so by Allah. There was no orders from Lady Sarah, there was no mockery from Ishmael—who was still a baby—towards the still unborn Isaac, there was no injustice, and most important, there was no taking sides nor racism from Allah, the Lord of all people. On the contrary, Allah never left the helpless woman or her child for a single moment, but was preparing the boy for the destiny which the archangel foretold his mother earlier: that he will be the father of a great nation. Abraham visited them from time to time. He did not forsake them completely, but he entrusted them to Allah, and fulfilled his duty towards his son. After they succeeded in their trials as mentioned, it was time to fulfill the promise by making the place where Ishmael lived and his offspring after him, the place of Allah’s sacred house, and of pilgrimage. Ishmael helped Abraham build the sacred house (Ka’bah) in Makkah amidst the valley called Bakkah. His brother Isaac also became the father of another great nation to fulfill Allah’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:4, that he will be the father of many great nations. When Abraham died, Ishmael and Isaac P.B.U.T. buried him together as came in Genesis, where it says:

{25:8} Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full [of years,] and was gathered to his people. {25:9} And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah………….

When Muslims try to explain that Allah is far exalted above practicing any kind of racism against His own creation, when we deny the claims that Allah only chooses prophets from the lineage of Israel as Jewish scholars claim, and when we say that Allah sent Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. to deliver to all people Allah’s final testament, final law, and correct what has been corrupted in the previous scriptures, we usually end up taunted and mocked. That’s okay, we are used to this reaction. Actually most people are usually afraid of what they are not used to and what they know not. Some even respond saying: “If what you say is true, then it’s not our fault, for it wasn’t us who corrupted the teachings of Allah but our ancestors, and so this will be our excuse on the judgment day, we are just holding on to our message as it has reached us.” Well to those I say “you are totally wrong. Allah created us as intelligent beings, He perfected our creation by bestowing upon us the bliss of commonsense…of being able to think, learn and deduce the truth of all things. You built your faith on the idea that you are Allah’s chosen people above others no matter what you do, or what sins you make, which could only mean that God is an unjust racist, and this is wrong for any reasonable human being. Allah sends his prophets to all people to guide those among them who have gone astray and lost track of the correct path to him. It’s only those who are pious enough, who work their reason and logic to get to know their creator, and dedicate themselves to the truth, that shall receive His guidance in this life, and His companionship in the next.”

I would like to conclude this post by some verses from Judaism’s scriptures, Isaiah {48:1-11}:

Listen to this, you descendants of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel and come from the line of Judah, you who take oaths in the name of the Lord and invoke the God of Israel— but not in truth or righteousness— you who call yourselves citizens of the holy city and claim to rely on the God of Israel— the Lord Almighty is his name: I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known, then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass. For I knew how stubborn you were, your neck muscles were iron, and your brows were brass. Therefore I told you these things long ago, before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, ‘My images brought them about, my wooden image and metal god ordained them.’ You have heard these things, look at them all. Will you not admit them? “From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you. They are created now, and not long ago, you have not heard of them before today. So you cannot say, ‘Yes, I knew of them.’ You have neither heard nor understood, from of old your ears have not been open. Well do I know how treacherous you are, you were called a rebel from birth. For my own name’s sake I delay my wrath, for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you, so as not to destroy you completely. See, I have refined you, though not as silver, I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed and I will not yield my glory to another?

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Written By: Ehab Shawky