Divine Favours to Hazrat Ibrahim (as)
As
we are in the month of Hajj (Dhul-Hijjah),
after the Eid-ul-Adha which was celebrated last Monday, today’s
Friday Sermon is on the divine favour granted to Hazrat Ibrahim (as)
and how thereafter the favour of prophethood has eternally been given
in the Muhammadan Ummah.
So,
I wanted to answer their questions [through this sermon] before going
into the heart of the subject of my sermon today which is also a
refutation also for them, which preserves the honour of Abraham (as)
as well as the honour of all his children and that of his legitimate
and honourable wives.
Islam
is undoubtedly a model way of life. Islam has indeed existed since
the beginning of the existence of humanity. Islam means submission in
peace to the will of the Unique God, a God who has no partner in His
worship. Islam was the way of life for all the honourable prophets of
God (even before the advent of Islam). But it is only with the advent
of the Holy Prophet of Islam that God Himself gave a name to his
faith and way of life and his religion, where God (Allah) gave him,
and all his followers who will be sincere and righteous (upright),
ISLAM
as their official religion and thus officially called them Muslims
(those who submit to the Unique God in peace and who spread peace
also).
Practices
such as observing fasting and pilgrimage existed before the coming of
the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). These practices existed at the time
of Abraham (as) and his son Ishmael (as) when they set up the
foundation of The Sacred House (the Ka’aba) and they did the
circumambulations (Tawaaf)
around the House, praying to the One God. But as I explained to you
in my sermon last Friday, after their time, after many years/
centuries, the people who came after them fell into the trap of Satan
and they started worshiping idols, forgetting the Unique God. Despite
their existing belief in Allah (the One God), but they also preferred
to place idols besides Him and pray to them, and so they attributed
partners in the worship of Allah.
And
I must say that the Hajj as taught to Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) is the
perfected form of the pilgrimage, a pilgrimage that is just and
perfect and that honours the rites to Allah that Abraham and Ishmael
(as) had done. It is this perfected pilgrimage that will continue to
exist until the end of the world. This is the Islamic Hajj. It
commemorates and honours all the legitimate and honourable rites of
all the prophets of God. Islam is the only religion that accepts all
the prophets of God, and honours them, and does not slander them.
Indeed, God loves all His messengers. He is the one who raised them
as prophets/ messengers.
And
last week, as well as in my Eid sermon, I spoke at length about the
sacrifice of animals, why we must make the sacrifice. Long ago, and
even today in remote places in Africa and Madagascar, there is human
sacrifice - cannibalism as we know it today. And certainly, what is
more serious is that it is not the flesh of animals that these people
eat, but verily the flesh of humans.
Before
the advent of Islam, [barbarian] people made human sacrifices. If
those who criticize Islam and even those who criticize Abraham (as)
lived in that barbaric age, then it is not the sacrifice of animals
that would have occurred [which they would have witnessed], but human
sacrifices. But God through Abraham and Ishmael put an end to human
sacrifice. He has served them as examples, as models par excellence
of sacrifices and He has by this means taught the Muslims and the
whole of humanity that it is only the sacrifices of animals that is
acceptable to Him, and not the human sacrifices, meaning the shedding
of a person’s blood. Moreover, in Islam, the Muslim does not have
the right to consume the flesh of even a permissible animal, until he
pronounces the name of God and sacrifices and eats the flesh in
question. Human sacrifices were practiced to please idols, a very
reprehensible practice in the eyes of the One God.
Prophecy concerning the Progeny of Abraham
God
relates in the Qur’an an event that is reported in the Old and New
Testaments, in that which: God put Hazrat Ibrahim (as) to the test in
relation to certain things, from which he came out victorious. The
Qur’an says:
“When
Allah tried Abraham with certain words and he fulfilled them, He
(Allah) said, ‘Indeed, I will make you a leader (Imam) for the people.’ He (Abraham) said, ‘And of my descendants?’ He (God) says, ‘My covenant does not include the wrongdoers.’” (Al-Baqara 2: 125)
It
is evident that as Abraham had fulfilled the commands of his Lord, so
God had made a pact with him that the Imamate
(that is, prophethood - Nabuwwah)
would be established among his children provided that they do not
become evil - wrongdoers.
Who
are Abraham’s offspring, and how did God fulfill His promise?
It
should be remembered that two main lineages are from Hazrat Ibrahim
(as): one by Hazrat Ismail (as), which spread in Arab countries and
the other by Hazrat Issac (as), and Jacob’s (Yaqub)
family which spread to Palestine and neighbouring countries.
The
first line is called the Ishmaelites and the second the Israelites.
Some Jewish tribes had also established themselves in Iran (Persia),
Afghanistan, etc. When the idolaters conceived the criminal designs
to throw Abraham into the fire, he prayed to God to give him pious
children who could become his worthy heirs and continue his work. The
Qur’an says:
“So
they hatched a plot against him, but We humiliated them. He said: ‘I will go to my Lord! He will surely guide me! O my Lord, grant me a righteous son!’ So We gave him tidings of a gentle son.” (As-Saffat 37: 99-101).
Hazrat
Ibrahim (as) had come to break the idols and restore the oneness of
God. The idolaters planned to kill him, but Ibrahim (as) answered
them with the greatest assurance that they could not stand in the way
of his mission, for God was certainly going to guide him. But at the
same time, feeling that these people could really put an end to his
life, he implored God to give him a son who could continue his
mission. His prayer was answered and his first child, Hazrat Ismail
(as) was born. The Old Testament speaks of this prayer and its
fulfilment in these terms:
“After
this, the word of the Lord came to Abraham in a vision: “Do
not be afraid, Abraham. I am your shield, your very great
reward.” But Abraham said, “Sovereign Lord, what can
you give me since I remain childless and the one who will
inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abraham said,
“You have given me no children; so a servant in my
household will be my heir.” Then the word of the Lord came
to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own
flesh and blood will be your heir.”
(Genesis 15: 1-4).
“And
the angel of the Lord said to Hagar (Hajra), ‘I will multiply your
offspring so that it will be innumerable.’ And, continuing, He said
to her, ‘You have conceived and will bear a son, and you shall call
him Ishmael, that is to say, ‘God has heard’, because the Lord
has heard the cry of your affliction. He will be a proud and wild
man; he will raise his hand against all, and all will raise their
hands against him; and he will set up his pavilions before all his
brethren.’” (Genesis 16: 10-12).
Here
the word “wild”
is used in the sense of freedom and independence. The Bible in Urdu
uses the word “Azad”
(free). There was a very great prophecy therein:
(i)
The posterity of Ishmael (as) would be innumerable;
(ii)
Ishmael (as) would set up his tents before all his brothers; that is
to say, his lineage would be firm and despite the hostility of many,
no one could destroy it;
(iii)
The time of his elevation and power would begin when he would raise
his hand against all and all would raise his hand against him, that
is to say, of his posterity a prophet would spring forth who, by his
universal message would upset all beliefs and consequently everyone
would be against him;
(iv)
He would be free, independent, and from the great opposition he would
encounter, he would come out victorious, that is to say, he would be
the stone that crushes the one on which it would fall, and the one
who would fall on it would break.
Now
I come to the second line from Abraham.
After the birth of Ishmael
(as), Abraham (as) had no hope of having another child. But God
wanted to bring forth a child from Sarah as well. So when God made
the decision to destroy the people of Lot (as), Abraham (as), who had
a tender heart, begged Him to spare them. God told him that this
people was utterly corrupted, that the few men who were good over
there would be spared, and at the same time He gave him the good news
that his family was going to bring forth pious people. Because
Abraham felt a pain when he heard of the destruction of the people of
Lot (as), God gave him the good news of a pious posterity.
When
the angels brought the news of the punishment, his wife was present:
“And
his Wife was standing, and she smiled. Then We gave her good tidings
of Isaac and after Isaac, Jacob. She said, “Woe to me! Shall I give
birth while I am an old woman and this, my husband, is an old man?
Indeed, this is an amazing thing!” They said, “Are you amazed at
the decree of Allah ? May the mercy of Allah and His blessings be
upon you, people of the house. Indeed, He is Praiseworthy and
Honorable.” (Hud 11: 72-74).
Mention
is made here of Issac and Jacob, for, indeed, the Israelites descend
from Jacob. It was by Jacob (Israel) that there were twelve tribes.
It is said in the Old Testament:
“God
said to Abraham, ‘You will no longer call your wife Sarai, that is,
‘My princess’, but Sarah, ‘The princess’. I will bless her,
and I will give you from her also a son, whom I will bless too; he
will be the head of the nations, and kings and various peoples will
come out of him.
Abraham
prostrated himself, face down, and laughed, saying in the depths of
his heart: A man of a hundred years to have a son? And will Sarah be
with child at ninety years old? And he said to God, ‘Give
me the grace that Ishmael lives.’”
(Genesis 17: 15-18).
It
follows that the announcement of the birth of Issac (as) was made
when Abraham and Sarah were no longer in a state to procreate. God
announced to them the birth of a son from whom various peoples would
come out. As a result, twelve tribes came out of Yaqub (as) [Jacob].
About
Ishmael, there is not the mention of peoples, but of twelve chiefs.
(Genesis 17:20). This means that the Bani Israel will be divided into
twelve peoples, while the Bani Ishmael will be one nation. From this
also follows that by Ishmael, God was going to gather everyone under
the banner of unity. Now, see how the foundation of the Ka’aba was
laid by Ishmael (as), the Ka’aba which would become the only [real]
centre on earth. It was from his posterity that Muhammad (pbuh) was
born, to rally all peoples under this banner of unity.
If,
after describing Abraham’s family and posterity in detail, we
reread this verse: “When
Allah tried Abraham with certain words and he fulfilled them, He
(Allah) said,‘Indeed, I will make you a leader (Imam) for the people.’ He (Abraham) said, ‘And of my descendants?’ He (God) says, ‘My covenant does not include the wrongdoers.’” (Al-Baqara 2: 125).
We
see that God made a covenant with the offspring of Abraham, except
the wicked. This promise was that the Imamat
(Nabuwwah)
would be given to his posterity. Thus, his two sons, Ishmael and
Issac became prophets. From the descendants of these two families,
God first chose those of Issac. His son became a prophet. Jacob’s
son, Joseph, was (also) a prophet. Then from the family of Benjamin there
was the prophet Moses. The Torah confirms that in fact this alliance
was contracted first with the family of Issac. God said to Abraham
again:
“Sarah
your wife will bear you a son whom you will call Issac, that is, he
laughs, and I will make a pact with him, and with his seed
[offspring] after him, so that My covenant with them may be eternal.”
(Genesis 17: 19)
It
is the same eternal covenant that God made with Abraham. The eternal
law is the one that every time misguidance becomes widespread, God
raises a prophet. This apostolate is a divine favour given to the
righteous and pious, and the wicked have no part in it.
“(Remember)
When Moses said to his people, ‘O my people! Remember the blessing
of Allah upon you, when He has appointed you prophets. And He made
you kings. And He gave you what He did not give to any other nations
[before you].’” (Al-Maida 5: 21).
God
repeatedly drew their attention to it: “O
Children of Israel, remember My favour of which I have filled you,
and (Remember) that I have preferred you to all peoples (of the
time).” (Al-Baqara 2: 48).
God
also reminded them of the eternal covenant by recommending them to be
faithful to it and to obey His commandments, and not to let
themselves become wicked, and assured them that He too would keep His
promise to grant them the favour of the Imamate and Nabuwwah:
“O
Children of Israel! call to mind the (special) favour which I
bestowed upon you, and fulfill your covenant with Me as I fulfill My
Covenant with you, and fear none but Me.”
(Al-Baqara, 2: 41).
But
unfortunately! The Israelites did not value this favour and were
unable to retain it. When Moses was raised as a Prophet in their
midst and God gave him the Book of Laws, the Torah, the Jews
displayed wickedness:
“And
[recall] when you said, ‘O Moses, we will never believe you until
we see Allah outright’; so the thunderbolt took you while you were
looking on.” (Al-Baqara 2: 56)
To
feel the manifestation of God one must practice good works, have an
unshakeable faith, and a solid heart, filled entirely with love for
God. But these unhappy Jews wanted to see God without making them
worthy of it [of seeing Him]. At the request of Moses, God called
them to Mount Thor, and when He manifested Himself they could not
bear what they saw, and God told Moses to warn them that one day the
favour of prophethood would be removed to be given to others.
Addressing his people, Moses said:
“The
Lord will raise up for you a prophet from among you, from your
brothers like me; it is he whom you will listen to; just as it was
according to the request that you made to the Lord your God near
Mount Horeb, where all the people were assembled, saying to Him, ‘I
will not hear the voice of the Lord my God anymore, and I will not
see this frightful fire lest I die.’
And
the Lord said to me, ‘All that this people has said is reasonable.
I will raise from the midst of their brethren a prophet like you; I
will put My words in their mouths, and He will tell them all that I
command. If anyone does not want to hear the words that this prophet
will utter in My name, it is Me who will take revenge’.”
(Deuteronomy 18:15-19)
This
prophecy is multi-faceted:
- Mention is made of the prophet who will be raised from among the brothers of the Israelites, that is to say, the Ishmaelites.
- This prophet will be a law-bearer like Moses.
- Like Moses, he will have a sword to defend against the attacks of his enemies because there is in the prophecy concerning Ishmael: “He will raise his hand against all and all will raise their hand against him.”
- His law shall be the word of God, the word of man shall not be mixed with it.
- This prophet will repeat the word of God as he will have heard.
- He who turns away from this Shariah (this law) will incur the vengeance of God, that is to say, a day will come when this Shariah will be the sole one being put into practice and all opposition will cease, and it is God who will preserve this Shariah.
This
prophecy was fulfilled by the coming of the Holy Prophet Mohammad
(pbuh). Although the proclamation of this prophethood was made by
Moses himself, yet God does not inflict the supreme punishment on a
people because of one mistake. He gives them the opportunity to make
amends, to redeem themselves, but if the people persists in their
misguidance, then God punishes them.
Thus,
the Muslim world must take great precautions not to become as
ungrateful as the children of Israel; we must in no way follow those
who do not believe in the unity of God in their misguidance.
Almighty
God, Allah has given us the best guidance and it is incumbent on us
then to follow His perfect commandments and universal messengers in
the Muhammadan Ummah so that His Oneness (Tawheed)
and the right path (Siratwal Mustaqeem),
in this case, Islam is always our focus in life.
May
Allah make us true Muslims, not Muslims by names, but Muslims who
know how to fulfill the duties of Islam, that is to say, to spread
peace in the world and to invite people to Allah (twa); to do the
Dawat-i-Allah
to make people submit to this One God, without a partner.
Insha-Allah, Ameen.
---Friday Sermon of 16 August 2019 ~14 Dhul-Hijjah 1440 AH delivered by Imam-Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hadhrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) of Mauritius.