Islamic divisions of the universe:
1. Dar Al Islam: the domain of the faithful (to
Islam)
2. Dar Al Harb: those with whom they are at war
until Judgment Day. (Not just the Jews: all non-Muslims!)
Islam is the fastest growing religion today: There are more Muslims
than evangelical Christians in Britain; 900 churches have been
converted to mosques in the UK. There are 1100 mosques in the
US; there are more Muslims than Jews in North America.
Ur of the Chaldees is first mentioned in the account of Abraham's
journey in Genesis 12:1. The
spiritual ruler of Ur was the moon-god. This god would ultimately
become the supreme deity of the entire Babylonian empire. The
root names of many individuals in Babylon preserves links to the
gods of the Babylonian pantheon:
Senacherib, or "Sin Ech-erib" = "Sin multiplies
his brothers."
The god "Sin" was elevated to the top of the Babylonian
pantheon by Nabu-na'id (Nabodnidus) in an effort to make Babylonian
religion more acceptable to subjects like the Arabians and Aramaeans.
The Arabians esteemed the moon god, but had more difficulty identifying
with Marduk, the supreme Babylonian deity associated primarily
with the city of Babylon.
The god Sin, "The Controller of the Night," had the
crescent moon as his emblem, and the lunar-based calendar, which
became the primary religious symbols of Islam, was worshipped
in Arabia as AI-Ilah. Mecca became the center of all pagan religions
of Arabia before Mohammed. AI-Ilah, the Moon God, was the "Lord
of the Ka'aba" ("cube") which was formerly the
center of pagan worship, ruling over 360 idols. Lucrative trade
routes resulted. The Ka'aba black cube in Mecca is of course the
center of Islamic worship today.
Islam incorporates beliefs in jinns ( which are genies, fairies);
in spells, magic stones, fetishes; and animistic beliefs (spirits
living in inanimate objects). See: Suras 55; 72; 113, 114.
Such beliefs are contrary to Biblical injunctions found for example
in Deut. 4:19; 17:3; Job 31:26-28. Penalties: Deut. 17:6; 2 Ki
23:5.
Astral religion, which involves worshipping heavenly bodies
("the host of heaven") is strongly warned against in
the Bible. In such idolatrous systems the Moon is often viewed
as a male deity; and the Sun, a female deity; with the Stars their
offspring. A Lunar cyclical calendar results. For example the
practice of fasting from crescent moon to crescent moon. Derived
from these forms of worship of the host of heaven are the practices
of bowing and prayer toward Mecca; the requirement for a Holy
Pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca, in order to circle the Ka'aba, the
site of the protective black stone. Al-Ilah was Lord of the Ka'aba;
is to be circled 7 times and kissed. Pilgrims then run to the
Wadi Mina to throw stones at the Devil. These rites are practiced
in Islam today.
Pagans who lived in Saudi Arabia before Muhammed was born worshipped
toward Mecca because Mecca is where their idols were located.
Because this pagan worship centered on Mecca was so widespread,
a rapid acceptance of Muhammad's new religion was possible. Thus,
Islam is a previously heathen religion modified into a monotheistic
form by discarding all the other pagan gods except for Al-Ilah.
Particular attention should be paid to the pioneering work on
Islam of Julius Welhausen, Theordor
Noldeke, Joseph Halevvy, Edward Glaser, William F. Albright, Frank
P. Albright, Richard
Bell, J. Arberry, Wendell Phillips, W. Montgomery Watt, Alfred
Guilllaume, and Arthur Jeffery. (1)
Archaeological and linguistic work done since the latter part
of the 19th century has discovered overwhelming evidence that
Muhammad constructed his religion and the Quran from pre- existing
material in Arabian culture.
The Quraysh tribe (Muhammad's tribe ) was previously devoted
to Allah, the moon god. Muhammad's father was Abd-Allah. His Uncle,
Obied-Allah. His mother, Aminah, was known to have been involved
in the occult. (2)
Muhammad's Wives: (Sura 4:3 forbids more than 4 wives; Muhammad,
however had 16 official wives, and 6 others as well.)
1. Khadija
2. Sawda
3. Aesah (8 or 9 years old)
4. Omm Salama
5. Hafsa
6. Zaynab (originally Jahsh's, Muhammad's adopted son's wife.)
7. Jowayriya
8. Omm Habiba
9. Safiya
10. Maymuna (of Hareth)
11. Fatima
12. Hend
13. Asma (of Saba)
14. Zaynab (of Khozayma)
15. Habla
16. Asma (of Noman)Other wives: 17. Mary (the Coptic Christian;
chose to remain a slave rather than convert.)
18. Rayhana
19. Omm Shank
20. Maymuna
21. Zaynab (a 3rd one)
22. Khawla
Legacy of Hate; Born of deception, weaned on violence.
Islam = "Submission"? Originally: that strength which
characterized a desert warrior who, even when faced with impossible
odds, would fight to the death for his tribe. (3)
Allah = AI-Ilah. Arabic for "the god." pre-Islamic name,
corresponding to the Babylonian Bel. The Moon-god; crescent moon.
(4)
[Quran never explains these tenets of the faith: it assumes
familiarity with them. Allah also is assumed to be well known
to the reader.]
Violence is commanded: "Fight and slay the pagans (infidels)
wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie
in wait for them in every stratagem of war." Quran, Sura
9:5
If Islam is resisted? "Their punishment is...execution, or
crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet from the opposite
sides, or exile from the land." Sura 5:33
Al Tawbah The Repentance): "Prophet, make war on unbelievers
and hypocrites, and deal rigorously with them." Sura 9:73Al
Anfal (The Spoils): "Let not the unbelievers think they will
ever get away... strike terror into the enemy of God and your
enemy... rouse the faithful to arms! If they (the non-Muslims)
incline to peace (accept Islam) make peace with them."
Sura 8:59Al Maidah (The Table): "If they reject your judgment,
know that it is Allah's wish to scourge them for their sins. Sura
5:49
The Quran is an amalgam of Hinduism, Buddhism, Mythraism, Greek
mystery religions, as well as elements from Judaism and Christianity.
Order confused, self-contradictions. Perfect
Arabic? Claimed in 12:2; 13:37; 41:41,44.
Over 100 aberrations,5 such as 2:177,192; 3:59; 4:162; 5:69; 7:160;
13:28; 20:66; 63:10, etc.
Free of error? Claimed in Sura 85:21, 22. Claims
to be consistent with the Bible? Sura 7:51 and 10:3 claim 6 days
of creation; Sura 41, 8 days of creation; Sura 32-48 disagree
with Genesis 7; numerous errors concerning Abraham: Father's name
was not Azar (6:74); did not live in Mecca (14:37); did not sacrifice
Ishmael (37:100-112); eight sons, not two; three wives, not two;
did not build the Ka'aba (2:12~127); was not thrown into a fire
by Nimrod (21:68, 69; 9:69), etc. Numerous chronological errors.
Flood did not occur in Moses' day (7:136 vs. 7:59ff) (6)
{Note: The Bible was not in Arabic in Muhammad's day, in fact
not until the 9th century].
According to the Bible any new revelation must agree with what
is already established as God's Word. (See Isa 8:20).
Is the Islamic "Allah" equivalent to "El,"
the God of the OT?
Islamic "Allah" implies a God who is unknowable, impersonal,
capricious (untrustworthy).
One God? (at a time) is a concept found in other pagan derivitive
religions:
Egypt: Ra, Isis, Osiris
Chaldeans: Ba-al, Molech
Greeks: Zeus; Jupiter
Muhammad was not sinless: See Sura 40:55. He never performed a
single miracle: Sura 17:91-95. He did not die for anyone. No personal
relationship with him is possible: he is dead.
For a detailed contrast between Muhammad and Jesus see Alfred
Guillaume, The Traditions of Islam.
Anti-Judaism: Islam is conspicuously Anti-Jewish
(7)
Al Maidah (The Table): "Believers (Muslims), take
neither Jews nor Christians to be your friends: they are friends
with one another. Whoever of you seeks their friendship Shall
become one of their number, and God does not guide (those Jewish
and Christian (called "wrong-doers," 5:51-5:74).
"Say, 'People of the Book (Jews), is it not that you hate
us (Ishmaelite Muslims), only because we believe in God, and in
what has been revealed to others, and because most of you (Jews)
are evil-doers?" 5:57
But according to the Bible Israel not to be cast off: Jer. 31
:36-37.
Islam is Anti-Black
American blacks have been widely deceived. Only people with white
faces will be saved; people with black faces will be damned: Sura
3:106,107. Arab Muslims were enslaving black
Africans long before Westerners.
Abrahamic descent?
Arabs are not (necessarily) descendants of Ishmael. (8)
Abraham never lived in Mecca.
Ishmael
Son of Abram and Hagar (Genesis 16:1); WAS promised blessing,
but a very different from that God gave to Isaac. Of Ishmael God
said, "A wild donkey of a man, and his hand will be against
everyone, and everyone's hand against him, and he will dwell (settle,
encamp) in the presence ("in the face") of his brothers."
See Genesis 16:1~12; 17:2~21; 21:8-21; 25:9,12-18....
Settle the Jewish people in the land of Israel, including Judea,
Samaria and Ephraim. Give Jerusalem back to Israel.
Cause Jerusalem to become a "Cup of Trembling" to all
nations Zech. 12:2
Russian exodus: Jer. 16:1-15. Overflow: Zech. 10:10-11:1.
Destroy Babylon completely. Judge Mount Seir and Edom. Cause all
the nations to know that it is God who brought Israel back. Ezek.
36:36; 38-39.
Cause a spiritual revival among the Jewish People. Deut. 30:6;
Ezek. 36:25ff; Jer. 31:31. Jewish People to accept Yeshua: Zech.
12:10
The Land of Israel
Land originally held by 10 nations descended from Ham after the
Flood: the Kenites, Kenezzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites,
Rephaim, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.
Jericho, the capital of the Amorites, was named after the moon-god:
Khirbet Kerak, Beth-Yerah, "House (Temple) of the Moon God."]
Land Grantof Israel to the Jews: See Genesis 15:7-8, 13-16; 17:8;
Deut. 28-30; Jer.. 30-31; Ezek. 36. The boundaries of the land
given to Israel extend from the "River of
Egypt" to the Euphrates: from eastern Egypt, all the way
into western Iraq. Genesis 15:1-21; Exodus 23:2~31; Numbers 34:1-14;
Joshua 1:3; Ezek. 47:1 ff.
Is Islam In the Scriptures?
Mt. Seir: (Esau's descendants) S. Jordan and N. Saudi Arabia:
Ezek. 35:3,-S; 10,12; 36: 2,3,5
Babylon (Iraq): Jer. 5O:4-6, 11,18-19; Isa 13:1-14:2
Lebanon: Israel will possess "the land of the Canaanites
as far as Zarephath." (on the coast of Lebanon between Tyre
and Sidon.) Obad. 1:20; Zech. 10:10; 11:1.
Gaza Strip: "The shoulder of the Philistines to the west"
(Isaiah 11:14) and "the Philistine lowland (Obad. 1:19) will
be possessed by Israel.
Moab (Southern Jordan, and Northern Saudi Arabia) will yield to
Israel. Isa 11:14.
The "West Bank": Called Judea and Samaria and Ephraim,
will belong to Israel. Jer. 30:5-8; Obad. 1:19)
Gilead (Southern Syria and Northern Jordan) belongs to Israel.
Zech. 10:10.
Jordan: The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a European creation
of 1946.
Moab and Gilead had been populated by unaffiliated Arabic Bedouin
tribes.
Recent and Future History Notes
W.W.I: British and Allies fought Germans and Ottoman Turks. Major
T.E. Lawrence organized the "Arab Revolt." Allenby victorious
in Middle East; League of Nations award the British "Mandate"
on April 25, 1920. (endures until May 14,1948.)
1921, the son of Sharif Hussein of Mecca in Arabia, an aggressive
young man named Abdallah, moved in with his troops, to the land
east of Jordan. The British Colonial Secretary (Winston Churchill)
recognized Abdallah as the emir (chieftain) of "Trans-Jordan."
Abdallah consolidates his control with his British-trained "Arab
Legion."
1946: Abdallah crowned King of Transjordan. His grandson, Hussein,
is the current king.
Joining in on the attack on Israel in its War of Independence
in 1948, the "Arab Legion" successfully fought the Haganah
and held the "West Bank." After joining Egypt in the
"6 Day War", they lost it in 1967.
The inhabitants of the Negev will possess "the mountains
of Esau": Jordan, including Petra.
The Ultimate Jihad: See Ezekiel 38 and 39.
Magog is the forbear of the Scythians, or modern day Russian.
(Hesiod, Herodotus, et al. See The Soviet Breakup, The
Magog' Factor , and other Koinonia House publications.)
The lead ally in the list is Iran ("Persia") Rafsanjani
has announced his "Grand Design" to unite the Islamic
world from Indonesia to Mauritania: almost 2 billion followers.
He believes he has the resources to "disconnect the Middle
East from its Judeo-Christian world order." Russia has signed
a treaty to back him.
God will intervene to protect Israel. This key event marks God's
dealing again with "My people" Israel. Cf. Hosea 1:9-2:3.
Clean-up after the battle? Left-over weapons provide all the energy
needs of the nation Israel for 7 years. Professionals sent in
for 7 months (after 7 month wait) and bury remains east of the
Dead Sea (downwind); tourists encountering a bone that was missed
don't touch it: they mark its location and let the professionals
deal with it. (Current day procedures for nuclear, biological,
and chemical warfare: TM 3-9905-007-70, HQ Dept. of Army, US Dept.
of Defense; et al)