2. Al-Baqara

Setting forth injunctions regarding social matters, the Quran states, ‘This is an obligation binding on the righteous.’ This shows us an important aspect of Islamic law. In mutual matters there are certain rights on which the law has been laid down. But there are further mutual rights which go beyond fixed boundaries. These rights can be seen as such only by those who are God-fearing. The more one is God-fearing, the more sensitive one is in discharging one’s duties with regard to giving others their dues.

Setting forth injunctions regarding social matters, the Quran states, ‘This is an obligation binding on the righteous.’ This shows us an important aspect of Islamic law. In mutual matters there are certain rights on which the law has been laid down. But there are further mutual rights which go beyond fixed boundaries. These rights can be seen as such only by those who are God-fearing. The more one is God-fearing, the more sensitive one is in discharging one’s duties with regard to giving others their dues.

The Muslims left Makkah for Madinah as a result of severe persecution at the hands of the Makkans. In Madinah they were free to live in accordance with their religion. But the opponents of Islam did not leave matters at that. They began launching armed onslaughts on the Muslims in order to uproot them from Madinah. The Muslims at that time were far less in number and had fewer resources as compared to their opponents. This discouraged them from going ahead and facing the enemy. On this occasion God reminded them of an event in the history of the Israelites, where in the trials of life, fear of defeat was defeat itself. The Philistines, a neighbouring people, once attacked the Israelites and defeated them, slaying more than four thousand Hebrews. The Israelites were so greatly stricken with fear that they abandoned their homes and ran away. ‘Thus the glory departed from Israel,’ and in the words of the Bible, ‘All the houses of Israel trembled with fear and beseeched the Lord.’ Twenty years passed in this state. Then they all gave serious thought as to why they had been defeated by the Philistines. Their prophet Samuel said to them, ‘If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods... from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines’ (1 Samuel 7:3). So they put away the foreign gods and served only their Lord. Now the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel, ‘But the Lord thundered on that day, with a great thunder upon the Philistines and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel’ (Samuel 7:10). Abandoning the path of trust in God leads to the moral death of nations and communities, while opting for the path of trust in God leads to their regeneration.

The Muslims left Makkah for Madinah as a result of severe persecution at the hands of the Makkans. In Madinah they were free to live in accordance with their religion. But the opponents of Islam did not leave matters at that. They began launching armed onslaughts on the Muslims in order to uproot them from Madinah. The Muslims at that time were far less in number and had fewer resources as compared to their opponents. This discouraged them from going ahead and facing the enemy. On this occasion God reminded them of an event in the history of the Israelites, where in the trials of life, fear of defeat was defeat itself. The Philistines, a neighbouring people, once attacked the Israelites and defeated them, slaying more than four thousand Hebrews. The Israelites were so greatly stricken with fear that they abandoned their homes and ran away. ‘Thus the glory departed from Israel,’ and in the words of the Bible, ‘All the houses of Israel trembled with fear and beseeched the Lord.’ Twenty years passed in this state. Then they all gave serious thought as to why they had been defeated by the Philistines. Their prophet Samuel said to them, ‘If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods... from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines’ (1 Samuel 7:3). So they put away the foreign gods and served only their Lord. Now the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel, ‘But the Lord thundered on that day, with a great thunder upon the Philistines and discomfited them; and they were smitten before Israel’ (Samuel 7:10). Abandoning the path of trust in God leads to the moral death of nations and communities, while opting for the path of trust in God leads to their regeneration.

Spending for the cause of God’s religion is called giving a ‘generous loan.’ This spending is purely for God: no other interest is involved. God called for a loan to be given to Him and he called it a ‘generous loan’ because He would return it many times over. The facing of difficulties and setbacks by a believer is in no way a deprivation. It is indeed akin to opening a new door to God’s blessings. At a later stage, by spending his life and wealth for the cause of God, he becomes deserving of those blessings of God, that no one would ordinarily receive. About three hundred years after the death of Moses, the Israelites were again subjugated by the polytheistic neighbouring nations. After having remained in that state of subjugation for about a quarter of a century, they felt the urge to bring back their period of glory. For this purpose they needed a leader around whom they could rally in order to fight their enemies. So their Prophet Samuel appointed a man called Talut in the Quran and Saul in the Bible. Tall, wise and strong, Saul was distinguished in physique, and commanding in appearance. Although he was superior both in mind and body, the Hebrews were loath to accept his leadership and raised all kinds of petty objections, one of which was that he belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest tribe in Israel. Moreover, he was not rich. Out of sheer selfishness, each one of them, instead of desiring the good of the people as a whole—as a leader should—wanted to be leader and king himself.

Spending for the cause of God’s religion is called giving a ‘generous loan.’ This spending is purely for God: no other interest is involved. God called for a loan to be given to Him and he called it a ‘generous loan’ because He would return it many times over. The facing of difficulties and setbacks by a believer is in no way a deprivation. It is indeed akin to opening a new door to God’s blessings. At a later stage, by spending his life and wealth for the cause of God, he becomes deserving of those blessings of God, that no one would ordinarily receive. About three hundred years after the death of Moses, the Israelites were again subjugated by the polytheistic neighbouring nations. After having remained in that state of subjugation for about a quarter of a century, they felt the urge to bring back their period of glory. For this purpose they needed a leader around whom they could rally in order to fight their enemies. So their Prophet Samuel appointed a man called Talut in the Quran and Saul in the Bible. Tall, wise and strong, Saul was distinguished in physique, and commanding in appearance. Although he was superior both in mind and body, the Hebrews were loath to accept his leadership and raised all kinds of petty objections, one of which was that he belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest tribe in Israel. Moreover, he was not rich. Out of sheer selfishness, each one of them, instead of desiring the good of the people as a whole—as a leader should—wanted to be leader and king himself.

Stirring up controversies on all issues was indicative of their degeneration. God’s decrees are based on knowledge and broadmindedness. Therefore, only that person will be held to be a true believer who is broadminded in his thinking and who takes decisions on the basis of realities rather than prejudices and other petty considerations. The restoration of the Ark of the Covenant was an extraordinary testimony to the appointment of Talut (Saul) by God’s own will.

The Israelites had a sacred chest, or box, known as the Ark of the Covenant (at-tabut), which they had had in their possession from the time they left Egypt. It contained the Ten Commandments engraved on stone, as well as relics of Moses and Aaron. This was a possession sacred to Israel. It served as a visible symbol of God’s gracious presence. It guided them on their journey, and led them on from victory to victory. It was lost to the enemy in the early part of Samuel’s ministry. But in the town where this Ark was placed, plague and pestilence broke out and the Philistines were terrified. Subsequently, they placed it on a driverless cart drawn by two cows. The beasts took it of their own accord to Bayt ash-Shamsh, a city of Judah. The Israelites were immensely overjoyed at its miraculous restoration.

About three hundred years after Moses and about one thousand years before Christ the Philistines attacked the Israelites and annexed most of the region of Palestine. After a period of time the Israelites wished to take some action against the Philistines, so that they might recover their lands from them. At that time there was a prophet called Samuel among them. Living in an ancient city in Syria, known as Rama, Samuel was in charge of the community matters of the Israelites. Therefore, a delegation met him and said to him, ‘Now that you have aged, you should appoint a king from amongst us, in order that we may wage war against our enemies under the command of our leader.’ Although Samuel did not have a good opinion of the character of the Israelites, he agreed to their request and promised to appoint a King for them. Therefore, he appointed a brave youth, Saul, who belonged to the tribe of Benjamin. Saul (Talut) set forth with the army to meet the enemy. On the way they had to cross the river Jordan. Since Saul was aware of the weaknesses of the Israelites, he employed a simple method to test them. He gave the order that, while crossing the river, no one was to drink more than a handful of water from it. The majority of the Israelites failed the test. However, God was with them and they emerged victorious under the leadership of Saul. A decisive role was played in this battle by David, a young Israelite soldier who was one of those who had full confidence in God. The feat he performed was to kill the enemy’s supreme commander, Goliath (Jalut). Upon the fall of Goliath, the Philistine army broke ranks and fled.