Summary:
Not accepting Muhammad as a prophet was one thing, but the main crime of the Jews was that they EXPOSED Muhammad as a false prophet. It was an unforgivable crime.
The irony was:
- Muhammad claimed that Islam was a continuation of the Abrahamic traditions of Judaism and Christianity. This led many people to approach the Jewish community to validate his claims.
- However, Jews got the strongest arguments against Muhammad. Instead of confirming Muhammad's prophethood, they got in a position, where their arguments were totally exposing Muhammad.
Muhammad had no answer to the Jewish arguments. His only option was to get rid of the Jews either by killing them, or through expelling them from Medina.
The TEST of "Miracle of Fire":
Following the migration to Medina, Muhammad initially sought to win favour with the Jews by altering the Qibla from Ka'ba (in Mecca) to Bait al-Maqdis (in Jerusalem) and incorporating many Jewish rulings into Islamic Sharia. However, this effort at appeasement quickly turned into deep-seated enmity and animosity.
The turning point came when:
- The Jews challenged Muhammad to perform the "Miracle of Fire," a test commonly associated with prophethood claims in the Bible.
- Muhammad and his Allah failed to produce such a miracle, leading to widespread disbelief among the Jewish community in Medina.
- Earlier, Muhammad also failed in Mecca to answer the 3 questions, that were asked by the Jews.
As a result, their exposure of Muhammad as a false prophet marked the end of Jewish appeasement and the onset of intense anger and hostility towards them.
The Bible contains several passages that highlight the phenomenon of divine acceptance of a person's sacrificial offering through the appearance of a mysterious fire that consumes the offering. These instances can be found in verses such as Judges 6:20-21, 13:19-20, and 2 Chronicles 7:1-2.
Actually, Muhammad had already made a mistake, and he had also previously confirmed this method of the miracle of fire in the Quran 5:27, in the story of Adam and his sons, where a fire appeared and consumed the offering of one son who sacrificed a sheep.
Quran 5:27:
Recite to them the truth of the story of the two sons of Adam. Behold! they each presented a sacrifice (to Allah): It was accepted from one (by fire consuming one of them), but not from the other.
Tafsir Tabari, under verse 5:27 (link):
It was narrated from as-Suddi, in his narration from Abu Maalik and from Abu Saalih from Ibn ‘Abbaas, and from Murrah from Ibn Mas‘ood, and from some of the companions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): ... Habeel (Abel) offered a fat lamb as his offering, while Qabeel (Cain) presented a sheaf of corn but secretly took out and consumed a large portion of the corn. Subsequently, fire descended from the heavens and consumed Habeel's offering, while Qabeel's offering remained untouched and unaccepted. In response, Qabeel became enraged and threatened to kill Habeel, vowing that he would not allow him to marry his sister.
Grade: Sahih (Albani)
Consequently, when Muhammad asserted his prophethood, the Jews asked him to provide proof through the manifestation of a miracle, specifically the fire consuming his offering.
Muhammad found himself unable to dismiss this demand outright, as he already acknowledged it in the story of Adam in the Quran.
However, Muhammad resorted to a different approach, offering a new excuse. He accepted the validity of the miracle involving the fire accepting the offering, but he refused to showcase this miracle. He justified his inability to show this miracle by accusing the Jews of Medina that their forefathers sinned by killing previous prophets
Quran 3:183:
They (the Jews) said: "Allah took our promise not to believe in any messenger unless He showed us a sacrifice consumed by Fire (From heaven)." Say: "There came to you messengers before me, with clear Signs and even with what ye ask for: why then did ye slay them, if ye speak the truth?"
However, this excuse by the writer of the Quran does not hold up under scrutiny as it is unjust to punish individuals for the sins of their ancestors. In this case, the writer of the Quran is essentially claiming to hold the Jews of his time accountable for the actions of their forefathers. This contradicts the concept of divine justice, which does not attribute guilt based on lineage.
Secondly, the writer of the Quran contradicts his own claims within the text. The Quran repeatedly asserts that the practices of Allah remain unchanging. Yet, in this instance, Muhammad is deviating from that principle by rejecting the miracle of fire as a valid proof of prophethood.
Quran 48:23:
[This is] the established way of Allah which has occurred before. And never will you find in the practice of Allah any change.
Muhammad's Failure to answer (or even to UNDERSTAND) the 3 Questions that Jews asked him
Earlier, when Muhammad was in Mecca, the Jews asked Muhammad 3 questions as a test of his prophethood. However, Muhammad and his Allah not only failed to answer those 3 questions, but they were even unable to UNDERSTAND those 3 questions.
Please note:
- Not knowing the answers is one thing.
- Providing incorrect answers is even worse.
- However, not even comprehending the questions is the worst possible outcome.
Muhammad and his Allah made this critical error by failing to understand the original questions.
The Jews asked Muhammad the following 3 Questions from The Book of Denial (The Bible).
| Questions that were asked by the Jews from the "Book of Daniel" |
How Muhammad/Quran answered them | |
| 1 |
The Jews asked Muhammad about the "Spirit of God الروح القدس" in the context of the Book of Daniel (i.e. if Daniel دانيال was a prophet or not despite the fact that the Spirit of God showed him "Visions"). A significant dispute arose when the Christians regarded Daniel as a prophet, as the Spirit of God had shown him visions, whereas the Jews did not. Consequently, the Jews believed that if Muhammad was truly a prophet of God, he would be able to resolve this disagreement. |
However, Muhammad (and his Allah) didn't have any clue about the original question, and he thought it about "Human Spirit". Thus Muhammad gave a VAGUE answer in the Quran:
|
| 2 |
The Jews then asked Muhammad and his Allah about a story from the Book of Daniel (Bible), which was a dream involving a ram with two horns. Firstly, the verse 3 to 4 are telling about the VISION about the ram:
And then the verse 20 gave the interpretation of the VISION:
|
Muhammad (and his Allah) mistakenly believed this was about Alexander the Great, who was also historically known as "the Two-Horned One." This story is found in Surah Al-Kahf (Chapter 18) of the Quran, verses 83-101. |
| 3 | From the Book of Daniel, the Jews also asked the 3rd question about the story of 3 young believing (Jewish) men who were thrown into the fire, but they survived as a miracle. |
Muhammad and his Allah incorrectly assumed that the Jews were asking about the Legend of 7 Sleepers of Ephesus (i.e. The people of the Cave). This legend was not even a part of the Bible, but only a later days Christian legend. And Jews could not ask about this Christian legend, as it was about PIOUS Christian faithful men, which goes against Jewish beliefs. Additionally, Muhammad (and his Allah) also became confused about the NUMBERS of people, while:
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Please read full details with proofs here:
Muhammad's Frustration as not even 10 Jews believed in his prophethood
This frustrated Muhammad so much, that he used to say even if 10 Jews believed in him, then all Jews would become Muslims.
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " لَوْ آمَنَ بِي عَشَرَةٌ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ لآمَنَ بِي الْيَهُودُ
Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Had only ten Jews (amongst their chiefs) believe me, all the Jews would definitely have believed me."
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم " لَوْ تَابَعَنِي عَشْرَةٌ مِنَ الْيَهُودِ لَمْ يَبْقَ عَلَى ظَهْرِهَا يَهُودِيٌّ إِلاَّ أَسْلَمَ
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying: If ten scholars of the Jews would follow me, no Jew would be left upon the surface of the earth who would not embrace Islam.
Note: The Islamic Translators of Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim added these words in parenthesis on their own "(amongst their chiefs)" or "Scholars of the Jews" It is a Distortion (TEHRIF) case, while these words have nothing to do with the original tradition, which is talking about normal 10 Jews, and not about any of their chiefs/scholars. Islamic preachers are compelled to do this TEHRIF (distortion) while it EXPOSES Islam and Muhammad, and Islamic preachers want to HIDE the Truth from the masses.
This distortion by Islamic preachers is utterly shameful and shows how dishonest they are and how ashamed they are of the truth.
It seems Muhammad repeated this statement multiple times, and his companion 'Auf ibn Malik is also a witness to a similar statement from him.
Musnad Ahmad bin Hanbal, Hadith 23464:
حدثنا أبو المغيرة قال حدثنا صفوان قال حدثنا عبد الرحمن بن جبير بن نفير عن أبيه عن عوف بن مالك قال انطلق النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يوما وأنا معه حتى دخلنا كنيسة اليهود بالمدينة يوم عيد لهم فكرهوا دخولنا عليهم فقال لهم رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: يا معشر اليهود أروني اثني عشر رجلا يشهدون أنه لا إله إلا الله وأن محمدا رسول الله يحبط الله عن كل يهودي تحت أديم السماء الغضب الذي غضب عليه
Narrated by Abu Al-Mugheera through Safwan through Abdul-Rahman ibn Jubayr through his father through 'Awf ibn Malik, who said: One day, the Prophet ﷺ and I went to a Jewish synagogue in Medina on one of their festivals. They hated that we made an appearance. The Prophet ﷺ said: "O' Jewish tribe, show me twelve men from among you who testify that there is no deity but Allah,and that Muhammad is his messenger, and Allah will spare all the Jews under the visible heaven from the wrath He has upon them."
But the Jews of Medina still refused to accept him as a true prophet, and that was the point where Muhammad's enmity and hatred started against the Jews:
- First of all, Muhammad changed the Qibla once again from Bait-ul-Muqqadas to Ka'ba in Mecca.
- Then he started openly threatening the Jews to accept Islam, otherwise, they would be expelled from Medina, and he would snatch away all of their lands by force.
Narrated Abu Huraira: While we were in the Mosque, the Prophet (ﷺ) came out and said, "Let us go to the Jews" We went out till we reached Bait-ul-Midras. He said to them, "If you embrace Islam, you will be safe. You should know that the earth belongs to Allah and His Apostle (only), and I want to expel you from this land. So, if anyone amongst you owns some property, he is permitted to sell it, otherwise you should know that the Earth belongs to Allah and His Apostle."
Yes, that was the whole argument of Muhammad: "...that the earth belongs to Allah and His Apostle (only) ..."
Please remember that Muhammad used the same argument to attack innocent Pagan tribes (who had nothing to do with Muhammad previously and had never attacked or harmed Muhammad).
Narrated As-Sab bin Jaththama: The Prophet (ﷺ) passed by me at a place called Al-Abwa or Waddan, and was asked whether it was permissible to attack the pagan warriors at night with the probability of exposing their women and children to danger. The Prophet replied, "They (i.e. women and children) are from them (i.e. pagans)." Prophet said: All the graze-lands belong to Allah and his prophet.
Later Muhammad's anger and hatred against the Jews went so high that he was no more satisfied by expelling them from Medina, but he wanted to expel them from the whole Arab peninsula. It was due to the reason that it was a shame for him that he was claiming himself to be the promised prophet of the Jews, but the Jews were telling people that he was not that promised prophet. Muhammad didn't want the Jews to tell this to others, thus he wanted to expel them from the whole Arabian peninsula.
It has been narrated by 'Umar b. al-Khattib that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: I will expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula and will not leave any but Muslim.
And this hatred against Jews goes till the last hour, where Muhammad asked his followers to kill all Jews:
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying: The last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say: Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him; but the tree Gharqad would not say, for it is the tree of the Jews.
Muhammad cursed the Jews even more than polytheist pagans:
Can you believe that:
- Muhammad cursed the Jews more than the polytheist Meccan pagans.
- And Muhammad also killed the Jews many times more than the polytheist Meccan pagans, although it were Meccan Pagans who used to torture Muhammad and Muslims, and fought wars with Muhammad. But the Jews of Medina neither tortured a single Muslim nor killed anyone of them.
All this started after the incident of the "miracle of fire":
Sins and Punishments :
- The Jews wronged themselves (Quran 16:118)
- by losing faith (7:168) and breaking their covenant (Quran 5:13).
- The Jews (echoing an ante-Nicaean, Marcionite polemic) are a nation that has passed away (Quran2:134; repeated in 2:141).
- Twice Allah sent his instruments (the Assyrians/or Babylonians, and Romans) to punish this perverse people (Quran 17:4-5)
- —their dispersal over the earth is proof of Allah’s rejection (Quran 7:168).
- The Jews are further warned about both their arrogant claim that they remain Allah’s chosen people (Quran 62:6),
- and continued disobedience and “corruption” (Quran 5:32-33; 5:64)
Other sins, some repeated, are enumerated:
- abuse, even killing of prophets (Quran4:155; 2:91),
- including Isa (Jesus) (Quran 3:55; 4:157),
- is a consistent theme. The Jews ridiculed Muhammad as Ra’ina (the evil one, in Quran 2:104; 4:46),
- and they are also accused of lack of faith, taking words out of context, disobedience, and distortion (Quran 4:46).
- Precious few of them are believers (also Quran 4:46).
- These “perverse” creatures also claim that Ezra is the messiah and they worship rabbis who defraud men of their possessions (Quran 9:30).
Additional sins are described:
- the Jews are typified as an “envious” people (2:109),
- whose hearts are as hardened as rocks (2:74).
- They are further accused of confounding the truth (2:42),
- deliberately perverting scripture (2:75),
- and being liars (2:78).
- Ill-informed people of little faith (2:89),
- they pursue vague and wishful fancies (2:111).
- Other sins have contributed to their being stamped (see 2:61/ 3:112)
- with “wretchedness/abasement and humiliation,” including usury (2:275), sorcery (2:102),
- hedonism (2:96),
- and idol worship (2:53).
More (and repeat) sins, are described:
- the Jews’ idol worship is again mentioned (4:51),
- then linked and followed by charges of other (often repeat) iniquities-the “tremendous calumny” against Mary (4:156),
- as well as usury and cheating (4:161).
- Most Jews are accused of being “evil-livers” / ”transgressors” / ”ungodly” (3:110),
- who, deceived by their own lies (3:24),
- try to turn Muslims from Islam (3:99).
- Jews are blind and deaf to the truth (5:71),
- and what they have not forgotten they have perverted.
- They mislead (3:69),
- confound the truth (3:71),
- twist tongues (3:79),
- and cheat Gentiles without remorse (3:75).
- Muslims are advised not to take the Jews as friends (5:51),
- and to beware of the inveterate hatred that Jews bear towards them (5:82).
- The Jews’ ultimate sin and punishment are made clear: they are the devil’s minions (4:60)
- cursed by Allah, their faces will be obliterated (4:47) if they do not accept the true faith of Islam.
- The Jews who understand their faith become Muslims (3:113).
- They will be made into apes (2:65/ 7:166),
- or apes and swine (5:60),
- and burn in the Hell fires (4:55, 5:29, 98:6, and 58:14-19).
Hassan Radwan