Peacock continued, "The Qur'an explain the historical facts of previous nations i.e. their acceptance or rejection of the messages of guidance, and by bringing forth the good or bad results as admonition and warnings for others, and have advised that warnings be taken from those stories. Of those events which prove to be great lessons and warnings for others is the events of what happened to the Children of Israel and the Jews, which led to Al-Quds and its holy place of worship being destroyed, and the Jews being carried off into as slaves exile on two occasions in their history.
Jerusalem or Al-Quds or Bayt al-Maqdis, and also spelled Baitul Muqaddas, were holy place of worship and the Qiblah of the Jews. It is also the birth place and burial ground of numerous prophets. Not only do the Jews and Christians consider it a holy place, but so also do the Muslims. Since the Mi'raj of the Prophet (ﷺ), it has gained in importance for Muslims. And whenever a Muslim recites Surah Al-Isra, his heart cannot but be filled with the honour and respect for the place. Allah says,
In the previous discussion, I have mentioned about the two corruptions of Children of Israel on the earth. Allah says,سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي أَسْرَىٰ بِعَبْدِهِ لَيْلًا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى الَّذِي بَارَكْنَا حَوْلَهُ لِنُرِيَهُ مِنْ آيَاتِنَا ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ"Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al- Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing." - (QS.17:1)
In these verses, the word Al-Kitaab, the Book, refers to those revealed scriptures to the prophets in which was prophecied about the mischief to be committed by the Children of Israel, which led to the destruction of Jerussalem and the enslavement of Israel into exile. Hence, even in the present Torah, there are prophecies to that effect in the scroll of Jesiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and Zakariya. The major share of these books deal with those prophecies and the manner in which Allah has on two occasion, punished them for their evils and mischief, is clear confirmation of the statements of the Qur’an. Now comes the question: In which era did these two prophecies come to pass? How did it happen?وَآتَيْنَا مُوسَى الْكِتَابَ وَجَعَلْنَاهُ هُدًى لِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَلَّا تَتَّخِذُوا مِنْ دُونِي وَكِيلًا"And We gave Moses the Scripture and made it a guidance for the Children of Israel that you not take other than Me as Disposer of affairs," - (QS.17:2)
ذُرِّيَّةَ مَنْ حَمَلْنَا مَعَ نُوحٍ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ عَبْدًا شَكُورًا"O descendants of those We carried [in the ship] with Noah. Indeed, he was a grateful servant." - (QS.17:3)
وَقَضَيْنَا إِلَىٰ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ فِي الْكِتَابِ لَتُفْسِدُنَّ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَّتَيْنِ وَلَتَعْلُنَّ عُلُوًّا كَبِيرًا"And We conveyed to the Children of Israel in the Scripture that, 'You will surely cause corruption on the earth twice, and you will surely reach [a degree of] great haughtiness.'" - (QS.17:4)
فَإِذَا جَاءَ وَعْدُ أُولَاهُمَا بَعَثْنَا عَلَيْكُمْ عِبَادًا لَنَا أُولِي بَأْسٍ شَدِيدٍ فَجَاسُوا خِلَالَ الدِّيَارِ ۚ وَكَانَ وَعْدًا مَفْعُولًا"So when the [time of] promise came for the first of them, We sent against you servants of Ours - those of great military might, and they probed [even] into the homes, and it was a promise fulfilled." - (QS.17:5)
ثُمَّ رَدَدْنَا لَكُمُ الْكَرَّةَ عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَمْدَدْنَاكُمْ بِأَمْوَالٍ وَبَنِينَ وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ أَكْثَرَ نَفِيرًا"Then We gave back to you a return victory over them. And We reinforced you with wealth and sons and made you more numerous in manpower" - (QS.17:6)
إِنْ أَحْسَنْتُمْ أَحْسَنْتُمْ لِأَنْفُسِكُمْ ۖ وَإِنْ أَسَأْتُمْ فَلَهَا ۚ فَإِذَا جَاءَ وَعْدُ الْآخِرَةِ لِيَسُوءُوا وُجُوهَكُمْ وَلِيَدْخُلُوا الْمَسْجِدَ كَمَا دَخَلُوهُ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَلِيُتَبِّرُوا مَا عَلَوْا تَتْبِيرًا"[And said], "If you do good, you do good for yourselves; and if you do evil, [you do it] to yourselves." Then when the final promise came, [We sent your enemies] to sadden your faces and to enter the temple in Jerusalem, as they entered it the first time, and to destroy what they had taken over with [total] destruction." - (QS.17:7)
عَسَىٰ رَبُّكُمْ أَنْ يَرْحَمَكُمْ ۚ وَإِنْ عُدْتُمْ عُدْنَا ۘ وَجَعَلْنَا جَهَنَّمَ لِلْكَافِرِينَ حَصِيرًا"[Then Allah said], 'It is expected, [if you repent], that your Lord will have mercy upon you. But if you return [to sin], We will return [to punishment]. And We have made Hell, for the disbelievers, a prison-bed.'" - (QS.17:8)
In this respect, the Mufassireen are of different opinions. Some believe that the first occasion of their mischief and subsequent punishment took place at the time of the attack on Al-Quds by the King Nebuchadnezzar, while the second was in the attack of Titas on Al-Quds. This seems to be correct historically. This seems to be corroborating the Qur’anic version with the following points. Firstly, that in ’the Book’, it has been stated that the Children of Israel will on two occasions be guilty of great mischief; secondly, when on the first occasion, they were guilty, Allah sent such a tyrannical ruler against them who entered their very homes and destroyed their houses; third, after this destruction, and after their repentance, Allah again granted them rule over themselves and their land, and again, enriched them with worldly goods and children; fourth, Allah again warned them to avoid disobedience and mischief and informed them that their obedience will not benefit Allah in the least, but if they should again make themselves guilty of great mischief it will be to their own detriment; fifth, but once again they broke the covenant, and once again, Allah sent against them a mighty foreign power who like the first one brought destruction to Al-Quds and the temple and treated them with humiliation and contempt.
Even though this destruction seemed everlasting, Allah will give them a third chance to left up their heads and recover, but they are warned that if a third time they transgress, then again, the Law of Retribution would come into operation and not only will they be punished in the world but in the hereafter as well.
According to historical facts, it is known that Jerusalem was twice in history completely destroyed by a foreign tyrannical ruler, who also distroyed Jewish nationalism, taking them into exile. The first occasion was, the destruction of Jerusalem by the King of Babilon, Nebuchadnezzar which took place around 604 B.C. The name Nebuchadnezzar itself, as it is given in the Arabic sources, has a Persianized form. It is consistently written Bukht-Nassar, where the first part is identical to the Persian word meaning "saved". Nebuchadnezzar is, merely a governor serving the kings of Persia. His geographical domain is limited to west of the Tigris.
The second occasion, was the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in 70 A.D. Both these occasions was a great blow against the Jews, their homeland, there religion and then nationality. Now we have to see, whether is it really true that the bad actions of the Children of Israel were in fact the cause for these two distinctions or not? Were they themselves responsible for bringing the Retribution upon themselves?
When men make shirk and rebellion to Allah, and become the friends of Shaytan, at such a time, Allah’s law of Retribution comes into operation and apart from the punishment in the hereafter, they are made to suffer destruction. It also brings about that the arrogance and pride of that people becomes changed for a position of humiliation and degradation. All this is brought about that they can become a lesson and warning for others. In this way, they are made to understand that true honour is not in there hands and so also in humiliation and honour, but only in the Hands of the All-Powerful, Creator of the Universe.
When we keep this natural law in mind as we take stock of the Jews of the Children of Israel and their history in this era, we come to conclusion that it is quite clear that the evils we mentioned formed the very basis of their lives at that time. Moreover they used to boast about this type of their life style. Hence we see that after Prophet Dawood, and Sulaiman, alayhimussalam, their moral degradation was of such a nature that untruths, deceit, injustice, disobedience, wickedness had become their customary habits, so much so that they even got involved with Shirk and idol-worship. For a long time, Allah granted them respite so that they may reform their conditions. Allah’s mercy did not initially turn away from them, and in fact, for their guidance, Allah continued to send prophets to them, calling them to righteousness and prohibiting them from evils. However the instructions and injunctions of these prophet had very little general effect upon them. Their disobedience only increased. It also so happened that their religious leaders for the sake of acquiring silver and gold, started misrepresenting the commands of Allah, making the Haraam into Halaal and vice versa. The general public put the Book of Allah behind their backs and went astray. In the end, the leaders of the nation proceed with this most unfortunate act of killing the prophets unfairly after rejecting them out of hand.
According to Hisham Ibn al-Kalbi, Luhrasb, the nephew of Qabus, became king and built the city of Balkh. Since at that time, the power of the Turks was growing, he dwelt in Balkh fighting the Turks. Nebuchadnezzar was his contemporary and was the commander over the area between al-Ahwaz and Western Asia (Ard al-Rum) to the west of the Tigris. He personally concluded the peace with the people of Damascus, and he sent one of his officers to Al-Quds. The latter, concluded a peace treaty with the king of the Israelites, a man of Dawood's progeny. The officer took hostages and departed. But by the time he reached Tiberias, the Israelites attacked their king and slew him, saying, "You gave hostages to the Babylonians and humiliated us." They then prepared to fight. Nebuchadnezzar's officer reported to him what had happened, and he was instructed to stay on until Nebuchadnezzar's arrival and to behead the hostages he was holding. Nebuchadnezzar then set out for Al-Quds, took the city by force of arms, slew the fighting men, and took the children captive. He found the prophet Jeremiah in the Israelite prison."
Green Pigeon asked, "Who was Jeremiah?" Peacock said, "He was Jeremiah ibn Hilkiah from the House of Levi Ibn Jacob. It has been claimed that he was Al-Khidr, and this was related by Al-Dahak from Ibn Abbas, but according to Ibn Katheer, it is not true. In Arabic, Jeremiah's name is usually vocalised Irmiyā, Armiyā or Ūrmiyā. Classical historians such as Wahb ibn Munabbih gave accounts of Jeremiah which turned "upon the main points of the Old Testament story of Jeremiah: his call to be a prophet, his mission to the king of Judah, his mission to the people and his reluctance, the announcement of a foreign tyrant who is to rule over Judah. There is a tradition that Jeremiah asked Allah, "O my Rabb! Which of Your slaves is more lovable to You?" He answered, "Those who remember Me most away from their remembrance of My creatures; those who are not thinking of death, nor speak of eternal living; those who, when they are allured by the riches of this world, despise them, and when they lose them are happy; those have My love, indeed, and I shall reward them more than they desired."
Wahb Ibn Munabbih reported that when sin increased, Allah revealed to an Israelite prophet called Amos (Mamia), alayhissalam, that he should stand before his people and admonish them that they are hard-headed, blind, and deaf and tell them, "I (Allah) remember their forefathers, and that makes Me merciful with them. And ask them about My bounty: can any of them benefit from disobeying Me? And does any suffer who obeys Me? The beasts remember their countries and return to them, but those people have forgotten why I have favored them for the sake of their forefathers, and have misused their generosity. Your cries have forgotten My tenets and your reciters worship other than Me, and your women have not learned a useful lesson and their rulers have lied against me and My messengers. Their hearts and mouths are full of lies. And I swear by My majesty and power that I will send upon them people with strange tongues, and strange faces, merciless in the face of their tears; and I shall send them a tyrannous cruel king, with an army like clouds, and followers like storms, and their flags like the wings of eagles, and the paces of their hoses like the decades of a journey. They will return buildings to dust, and leave the villages a wilderness. Woe betide it and its inhabitants if they shout and invoke! I will not look at their faces."
Ibn Asakir has related that Allah the Exalted sent Jeremiah to the children of Israel when the situation had become worse among them - in disobedience, killing of prophets and covetousness. Allah was determined to revenge Himself upon them vindictively; and so He revealed to Jeremiah, "I am going to destroy Jerusalem (the children of Israel) irevenge. Go to the Dome of the Rock. I will give you My commands and revelations." Jeremiah stood up and rent his clothes, and applied ashes to his face and fell prostrate and said, "O my Rabb! Would that my mother had not borne me, when You made me the last prophet of Israel, and Jerusalem be destroyed in my time." Allah said, "Raise your head." He raised his head, wept, and said: "O my Rabb! Whom will You set against them?" He said, "The worshippers of fire who, do not fear My punishment, nor expect My reward. Stand up Jeremiah, and hear the news about Israel. Before I chose you, I had made you and favored you and honored you. Go with the king and guide and protect him."
He was with the king while he was receiving revelation from Allah, and they forgot how Allah saved them. "Go and tell them what I have told you. "O Allah! I am weak and if You do not strengthen me." "Do you not know that all affairs are controlled by Me? I am Allah without semblance, or any like Me. I spoke to the oceans so; I am with you, and nothing shall harm you. Go to your people and tell them: Allah has remembered you, with His remembrance of our forefathers' good deeds. The animals remember their countries and return to them. But those people of yours are drenched in destruction and damnation, for they have forgotten the purpose of My generosity to their forefathers and have misplaced My favors. The scholars and priests have gone astray and have worshipped another god besides Me. "As for their kings and princes, they have been lavished with My bounty and though themselves safe from My fate. They abandon My Book and kill My prophets. Is it possible for Me to have a partner? Is it possible for Me to make a creature to be worshipped and to be obeyed besides Me? As for their reciters and jurists, they teach and learn what they like. As for the children of the prophets, they are oppressed and seduced and go with the crowd. They want the positions of their fathers without the discipline, patience, piety, and kindness of their fathers. "By my power, I swear, that I shall send woe upon them that no wise man can understand. I shall replace their luxury with ordeal, chains, and fetters and after dwelling in palaces, they will dwell in dust. I will disgrace and degrade their womenfolk. I create My creatures and slaves with mercy and bounty. If they accept and recognize it, I complete My favors and mercy. When I change My mind, I change My mind; and if I change, I am angry; and if I am angry, I punish, and nothing prospers with My anger."
Ibn Katheer in his book, according Ka'b, related that Jeremiah said, "By Your grace, I have come to learn before You; how is it possible when I am weak and powerless, to speak before You? But by Your mercy, You have spared me to this day. None fears this punishment more than I do, because I have been among them while they disobeyed You, yet without it changing me. If You punish me, I deserve it, and if You spare me, I expect it of Your kindness. O Rabb, You are Overlord! Are you going to destroy their country when it is the place of Your prophets the place of Your revelations? O Rabb, the Exalted, and Blessed by Your Name! For You to destroy this mosque and all pertaining to it, and those houses which landed Your praise! O Rabb, for You to kill these people and punish them, when they are the issue of Ibrahim, Your faithful friend, and Dawood, Your chosen one! O Rabb, which village will escape Your punishment then? Which worshipper will escape Your vengeance after the children of Your faithful friend Ibrahim?" He on High said, "He who disobeys Me will not detest My punishment. I had honored them because they obeyed Me. If they disobeyed me I will place them among the disobedient, until I rescue them out of My Mercy."
Jeremiah said, "O Rabb, You made friends with Ibrahim and for his sake You preserved us; and Musa, You did save; and he asked You to save us and not abandon us, nor throw us to the enemy." And so Allah revealed to him, "O Jeremiah, I made you honored in your mother's womb and have chosen you to this day. If your people had protected the orphans, the widows, the helpless, and the stranded, I would have been their Sustainer. They would have been like a blissful garden to Me; but I complain of the Children of Israel to you. I have been the kind shepherd to them; but I honor only those who honor and despise those who despise My command. Those before them feared Me, but these people displayed their obedience of Me in the temple, market place, hill and mountain tops, and under the shade of trees until the heavens wondered at them before Me, and the earth and the mountains, including the beasts, wondered and wailed. All that had no effect on them; nor was the Book useful to them."
When Jeremiah delivered the message of his Rabb, and the people heard the threats and warnings in it, they said, "You are lying, if you are saying that Allah shall destroy the land, His temple, His Book, His worship, and monotheism." They captured Jeremiah, tied him up and imprisoned him. At this, Allah sent Nabuchadnezzar upon them. He entered the country with his troops and surrounded the city. When the siege was prolonged they surrendered to his rule. They opened the gates and Nebuchadnezzar's troops streamed in.
During Nebuchadnezzar's ruling them, he ruled them savagely and punished them cruelly. He killed a third of them, captured a third, and spared the lame and the old; then h trampled upon them with the horses, demolished their houses, drew the youth along, and stood the women in the market places as guards. He intimidated the troops and destroyed the castles and temples. He burned the Torah. He asked about Daniel, the prophet who had written to him, but he was dead. His family took out the letter which he had written to him. Among the family members were Daniel the youngest son of Ezekiel, Azariah, and Mishael. He left that letter for them. The younger Daniel succeeded the elder Daniel. Nabuchadnezzar entered Jerusalem with his troops, then marched to Syria. He killed the children of Israel until he almost exterminated them. He returned to Babylon with booty in the form of treasure and men, among them young princes and children of priests numbering seventy thousand.
Allah had sent Jeremiah as a prophet to warn the Children of Israel of what Nebuchadnezzar was to bring upon them, and to tell them that unless they repented and gave up their evil deeds, Allah would visit upon them the power that would slay their fighting men and capture their children. Nebuchadnezzar said to Jeremiah, "What is it you want?" Jeremiah then told him that Allah had sent him to warn the Israelites of what was to befall them, but they did not believe it and imprisoned him. Nebuchadnezzar said, "Wretched people, they defied their Rabb's messenger." He released Jeremiah and treated him well. The residue of the unfortunate Israelites gathered around the prophet and said, "We were wrong and wicked, but we are repenting before Allah, the evil we have per petrated. Pray to Allah to accept our repentance." He prayed, and Allah revealed to him that they were not sincere saying, "If they are sincere, let them stay with you in this city." Jeremiah told them of the divine command, but they said, "How shall we stay on in a town that was destroyed and whose people have aroused divine wrath?" They refused to remain there.
Nebuchadnezzar then wrote to the king of Egypt, "Some of my slaves have run away from me to you; send them to me, or else I shall attack you and send my cavalry to conquer your land." The king of Egypt wrote back, "They are not your slaves, but free men and the sons of free men." So Nebuchadnezzar attacked him, slew him, took the Egyptians captive, and proceeded through North Africa (Maghrib) until he reached its very farthest point. He then returned home with many captives from Palestine and Transjordan, among them Daniel and other prophets. That was the time when the Israelites dispersed. Some of them settled in the Hijaz, at Yathrib and in the Wadi al-Qura, and elsewhere.
Hashim ibn Al-Kalbi reported that Allah Ta'ala revealed to Jeremiah, "I am restoring Jerusalem. Therefore, proceed to settle there." So he set out, and arriving there he found it in ruins. He said to himself, "Praised be to Allah, He commanded me to settle in this city and announced to me that He would restore it. But when will He rebuild it, and when will He revive it? After its death?" He then put his head down and fell asleep. His donkey and provision-basket were with him. He remained asleep seventy years, so that Nebuchadnezzar was gone, as was the great king above him, that is, Luhrasb. His reign lasted 120 years, and he was succeeded by his son Bishtasb.''
Word reached Bishtasb about Palestine, that it was in ruins and that wild beasts had become numerous there, and that no humans remained there. He announced in Babylonia among the Israelites that whosoever wished to return to Palestine could do so, and he made a man of the progeny of Dawood king over them. He ordered him to rebuild Jerusalem and to reconstruct its temple; consequently, the Israelites returned and rebuilt it.
Then Allah opened Jeremiah's eyes, and the prophet looked at the city as it was being rebuilt. He had slept until he was a hundred years old, but when Allah revived him he thought he had been asleep for only an hour. He remembered the city in ruin and desolation. When he saw it now, he exclaimed, "I know that Allah is powerful over everything."
Green Pigeon interrupted, "Wait a minute my brother! Isn't the story similar to the story of Uzayr?" Peacock said, "Allah said,
Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that ‘Ali bin Abi Thalib said that the verse [2:259] meant ‘Uzayr. Mujahid bin Jabr said that the verse refers to a man from the Children of Israel, and the village was Jerusalem, after Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it and killed its people. According to Ibn Katheer, the essence of what has been written by Ibn Jarir is that the person or wayfarer passing through this village was Jeremia. Others say that it was Hosea or Uzayr, and this is the consensus of the ancients and those after them, but Allah knows best."أَوْ كَالَّذِي مَرَّ عَلَىٰ قَرْيَةٍ وَهِيَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَىٰ عُرُوشِهَا قَالَ أَنَّىٰ يُحْيِي هَٰذِهِ اللَّهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا ۖ فَأَمَاتَهُ اللَّهُ مِائَةَ عَامٍ ثُمَّ بَعَثَهُ ۖ قَالَ كَمْ لَبِثْتَ ۖ قَالَ لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ ۖ قَالَ بَلْ لَبِثْتَ مِائَةَ عَامٍ فَانْظُرْ إِلَىٰ طَعَامِكَ وَشَرَابِكَ لَمْ يَتَسَنَّهْ ۖ وَانْظُرْ إِلَىٰ حِمَارِكَ وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ آيَةً لِلنَّاسِ ۖ وَانْظُرْ إِلَى الْعِظَامِ كَيْفَ نُنْشِزُهَا ثُمَّ نَكْسُوهَا لَحْمًا ۚ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ قَالَ أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ"Or [consider such an example] as the one who passed by a township which had fallen into ruin. He said, 'How will Allah bring this to life after its death?' So Allah caused him to die for a hundred years; then He revived him. He said, 'How long have you remained?' The man said, 'I have remained a day or part of a day.' He said, 'Rather, you have remained one hundred years. Look at your food and your drink; it has not changed with time. And look at your donkey; and We will make you a sign for the people. And look at the bones [of this donkey] - how We raise them and then We cover them with flesh.' And when it became clear to him, he said, 'I know that Allah is over all things competent.'" - (QS.2:259)
Then Peacock continued, "Ibn Jarir said that the Children of Israel settled in Jerusalem and their government was returned to them. They multiplied there until the Romans were victorious over them in the period of muluk al-tawa'if, the period between Alexander the Great and the Sasanian dynasty. After that, they no longer had a commonwealth (jama'ah).
It was in the time of Bishtasb that Zoroaster (Zaradasht), whom the Zoroastrians consider their prophet, appeared. Some scholars from among the People of the Book in Palestine assert that Zoroaster was a servant of one of the prophet Jeremiah's disciples, and that he was close to the latter and favored by him. But he betrayed his master and slandered him. The master invoked wrath, and the man thus became a leper. He reached Adharbayjan where he started the Zoroastrian faith. Later, he went to Bishtasb, who was then at Balkh . When Zoroaster came to Bishtasb and offered him the new faith, the king admired it, forced the people to embrace it, and perpetrated a great massacre among his subjects in this connection. They followed his religion. Bishtasb reigned for 112 years.
After Bashtaasib, his son Barman ruled. They were among the famous and heroic kings of Persia, and Nebuchadnezzar had been deputy to all three of them. He lived a long time, may Allah torment him!
