the religion of Abraham, who was orthodox, and was no idolater. The sabbath was only appointed unto those who differed win their prophet concerning it; and thy LORD will surely judge between them, on the day of resurrection, as to that concerning which they differed. Invite men unto the way of thy LoRD, by wisdom, and mild exhortation; and dis pute with them in the most condescending manner for thy LoRD well knoweth him who strayeth from his path, and he well knoweth those who are rightly directed. If ye take vengeance on any, take a vengeance pro portionable to the wrong which hath been done you; but if ye suffer wrong patiently, verily this will be better for the patient. Wherefore, do thou bear opposition with patience; but thy patience shall not be practicable, unless with God's assistance. And be thou not grieved on account of the unbelievers; neither be thou troubled for that which they subtilely devise; for God is with those who fear him, and are upright.

CHAPTER XVII.

INTITLED THE NIGHT JOURNEY;• REVEALED AT MECCA.

IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD.

*[XV.] PRAISE be unto him who transported his servant by night, from the sacred temple of Mecca to the farther temple of Jerusalem, the circuit

These were the Jews; who, being ordered by Moses to set apart Friday (the day now observed by the Mohammedans) for the exercise of divine worship, refused it, and chose the sabbath day, because on that day God rested from his works of creation; for which reason they were commanded to keep the day they had chosen in the strictest manner.'

This passage is supposed to have been revealed at Medina, on occasion of Hamza, Mohammed's uncle, being slain at the battle of Ohod. For the infidels having abused his dead body, by taking out his bowels, and cutting off his ears and his nose, when Mohammed saw it, he swore that if God granted him success, he would retaliate those cruelties on seventy of the Koreish; but he was by these words forbidden to execute what he had sworn, and he accordingly made void his oath. Abu'lfeda makes the number on which Mohammed swore to wreak his vengeance to be but thirty: but it may be observed by the way, that the translator renders this passage in that author, God hath revealed unto me that I shall retaliate, &c., instead of, If God grant me victory over the Korcish, I will retaliate, &e, reading Lain adhharni, for adhfarni; God, far from putung this design into the prophet's head by a revelation, expressly forbidding him to put it in execution.

Here, says al Beidàwi, the Koran principally points at Mohammed, who was of all men the most conspicuous for meekness and clemency.

The reason of this inscription appears in the first words. Some intitle the chapter, The Children of Israel.

Some except eight verses, beginning at these words, It wanted little but that the infidels had seduced thee, &c.

C

From whence he was carried through the seven heavens to the presence of God, and brought back again to Mecca the same night.

This journey of Mohammes to heaven is so well known, that I may be pardoned if 1 omit the description of it. The English reader may find it in Dr. Prideaux's Life of Mohammed, and the learned in Abu'lfeda, whose annotator has corrected several mistakes in the relation of Dr. Prideaux, and in other writers.

It is a dispute among the Mohammedan divines, whether their prophet's night-journey Al Beidawi, Jallalo'ddin. • Tidem. Abulf. Vit. Moh. p. 68. ' Page 43 Vit. Moham. cap. 19

&c. See also Morgan's Mohammedism Explained, vol. 2.

of which we have blessed, that we might show some of our signs;* for God is he who heareth, and seeth. And we gave unto Moses the book of the law, and appointed the same to be a direction unto the children of .srael, commanding them, saying, Beware that ye take not any other patror besides me. O posterity of those whom we carried in the ark with Noah :“ verily he was a grateful servant. And we expressly declared unto the children of Israel in the book of the law, saying, Ye will surely commit evil in the earth twice, and ye will be elated with great insolence. And when the punishment threatened for the first of those transgressions came to be executed, we sent against you our servants, endued with exceeding strength in war, and they searched the inner apartments of your houses; and the prediction became accomplished. Afterwards we gave you the victory over them, in your turn, and we granted you increase of wealth and children, and we made you a more numerous people, saying, If ye do well, ye will do well to your own souls; and if ye do evil, ye will do it unto the same. And when the punishment threatened for your latter transgression came to be executed, we sent enemies against you to afflict you,

was really performed by him corporeally, or whether it was only a dream or a vision. Some think the whole was no more than a vision; and allege an express tradition of Moawiyah, one of Mohammed's successors, to that purpose. Others suppose he was carried bodily to Jerusalem, but no farther; and that he ascended thence to heaven in spirit only. But the received opinion is, that it was no vision, but that he was actually transported in the body to his journey's end; and if any impossibility be objected, they think it a sufficient answer to say, that it might easily be effected by an omnipotent agent.'

"That we might leave there the tokens of our power."-Savary.

The commentators are put to it to find out the connexion of these words with the foregoing. Some think the accusative case is here put for the vocative, as I have translated it and others interpret the words thus, Take not for your patrons, besides me, the posterity of those, &c., meaning, mortal men.

Their first transgression was their rejecting the decisions of the law, their putting Isaiah to death, and their imprisoning of Jeremiah :3 and the second was their slaying of Zachariah and John the Baptist, and their imagining the death of Jesus.'

These were Jalut, or Goliah, and his forces; or Sennacherib the Assyrian; or else Nebuchadnezzar, whom the eastern writers call Bakhtnasr (which was, however, only his surname, his true name being Gudarz, or Raham) the governor of Babylon under Lohorasp, king of Persia, who took Jerusalem, and destroyed the temple.

By permuting Javid to kill Goliah; or by the miraculous defeat of Sennacherib's army; or for that God put it into the heart of Bahman the son of Isfandiyar, when he succeeded his grandfather Lohorasp, to order Kiresh, or Cyrus, then governor of Babylon, to send hoe the Jews from their captivity, under the conduct of Daniel; which he accordingly did, and they prevailed ugainst those whom Bakhtnasr had left in the land."

Some imagine the army meant in this place was that of Bakhtnasr; but others say the Persians conquered the Jews this second time, by the arms of Gudarz (by whom they seem to intend Antiochus Epiphanes), one of the successors of Alexander at Babylon. It is related that the general in this expedition, entering the temple, saw blood bubbling up on the great altar, and asking the reason of it, the Jews told him it was the blood of a sacrifice which had not been accepted of God; to which he replied, that they had not told him the truth, and ordered a thousand of them to be slain on the altar: but the blood not ceasing, he told them, that if they would not confess the truth, he would not spare one of them; whereupon, they acknowledged it was the blood of John: and the general said, Thus hath your Lord taken vengeance on you; and then cried out, O John, my Lord and thy Lord knoweth what hath befallen thy people for thy sake; wherefore, let thy blood stop, Jallalo'ddin. * Idem.

• Vide Vit. Moham. cap. 18. 1 Al Beidawi. ' Idem. • Idem, Yahya. Al Zamakhshari, al Beidâwi.

Jallalo'ddin.

• Idem. • Yahya,

and to enter the temple, as they entered it the first time, and utterly to destroy that which they had conquered. Peradventure your LORD will have mercy on you hereafter but if ye return to transgress a third time, we also will return to chastise you;1 and we have appointed hell to be the prison of the unbelievers. Verily this Korân directeth unto the way which is most right, and declareth unto the faithful, who do good works, that they shall receive a great reward; and that for those who believe not in the life to come, we have prepared a grievous punishment. Man prayeth for evil, as he prayeth for good ;*,for man is hasty. We have ordained the night and the day for two signs of our power: afterwards we blot out the sign. of the night, and we cause the sign of the day to shine forth, that ye may er.deavour obtain plenty from your LORD by doing your business therein, and that ye may know the number of years, and the computation of time; and every thing necessary have we explained by a perspicuous explication. The fate of every man have we bound about his neck ; and we will produce unto him, on the day of resurrection, a book wherein his actions shall be recorded: it shall be offered him open, and the angels shall say unto him, Read thy book; thine own soul will be a sufficient accountant against thee, this day. He who shall be rightly directed, shall be directed to the advantage only of his own soul; and he who shall err shall err only against the same: neither shall any laden soul be charged with the

by God's permission, lest I leave not one of them alive; upon which the blood immediately stopped."

These are the explications of the commentators, wherein their ignorance in ancien history is sufficiently manifest; though, perhaps, Mohammed himself, in this latter passage, intended the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans.

And this came accordingly to pass for the Jews being again so wicked as to reject Mohammed, and conspire against his life, God delivered them into his hands; and he exterminated the tribe of Koreidha, and slew the chiefs of that of al Nadîr, and obliged the rest of the Jewish tribes to pay tribute.10

Out of ignorance, mistaking evil for good; or making wicked imprecations on himself and others, out of passion and impatience.

1 Or, inconsiderate, not weighing the consequence of what he asks.

Mo

It is said that the person here meant is Adam, who, when the breath of life was breathed into his nostrils, and had reached so far as his navel, though the lower part of his body was, as yet, but a piece of clay, must needs try to rise up, and got an ugly fall by the bargain. But others pretend the passage was revealed on the following occasion. hammed committed a certain captive to the charge of his wife, Sawda bint Zamáa, who, moved with compassion at the man's groans, unbound him, and let him escape: upon which the prophet, in the first motions of his anger, wished her hand might fall off; but immediately composing himself, said aloud, O God, I am but a man; therefore turn my curse into a blessing.

"The night and the day bear witness to our power. We have covered the night with a veil, and enlightened the face of day, that ye may employ it in seeking abundance. It enables you to compute the years and the times. The impress of our wisdom is resplendent in all parts."-Savary.

Literally, the bird, which is here used to signify a man's fortune or success: the Arabs, as well as the Greeks and Romans, taking omens from the flight of birds, which they supposed to portend good luck, if they flew from the left to the right, but if from the right to the left, the contrary; the like judgment they also made when certain beasts passed before them.

"Like a collar, which he cannot by any means get off. See the Prelim. Disc. sect. iv. D 73. See ibid. p. 64

• Al Beidâwi.

10 Idem.

Jallalo'ddin.

rurden of another. We did not punish any people, until we had first sent an apostle to warn them. And when we resolved to destroy a city, we commanded the inhabitants thereof, who lived in affluence, to obey our apostle; but they acted corruptly therein: wherefore the sentence was justly pronounced against that city; and we destroyed it with an utter destruction. And how many generations have we consumed since Noah? for thy LORD sufficiently knoweth and seeth the sins of his servants Whosoever chooseth this transitory life, we will bestow on him therein beforehand that which we please; on him, namely, whom we please: afterwards will we appoint him hell for his abode; he shall be thrown into the same to be scorched, covered with ignominy, and utterly rejected from mercy. But whosoever chooseth the life to come, and directeth his endeavour towards the same, being also a true believer; the endeavour of these shall be acceptable unto God. On all will we bestow the blessings of this life, both on these and on those, of the gift of thy LORD; for the gift of thy LORD shall not be denied unto any. Behold, how we have caused some of them to surpass others in wealth and dignity: but the next life shall be more considerable in degrees of honour, and greater in excellence. Set not up another god with the true God, lest thou sit down in disgrace, and destitute.* Thy LORD hath commanded that ye worship none besides him; and that ye show kindness unto your parents, whether the one of them, or both of them attain to old age with thee." Wherefore, say not unto them, Fie on you! neither reproach them, but speak respectfully unto them; and submit to behave humbly towards them, out of tender affec tion, and say, O LORD, have mercy on them both, as they nursed me when I was little. Your LORD well knoweth that which is in your souls; whether ye be men of integrity: and he will be gracious unto those who sincerely return unto him. And give unto him who is of kin to you his due, and also unto the poor, and the traveller. And waste not thy substance profusely: for the profuse are brethren of the devils: and the devil was ungrateful unto his LORD. But if thou turn from them, in expectation of the mercy which thou hopest from thy LORD;t at least, speak kindly unto them. And let not thy hand be tied up to thy neck; neither open it with an unbounded expansion," lest thou become worthy of repre

** Give not to God an equal; nor remain seate. without glory, and without virtue." -Savary.

That is, receiving their support and maintenance from thee.
Literally, Lower the wing of humility, &c.

That is, friendship and affection, and assistance in time of need.

Prodigality, and squandering away one's substance in folly or luxury, being a very great sin. The Arabs were particularly guilty of extravagance in killing camels, and distributing them by lot, merely out of vanity and ostentation; which they are forbidden by this passage, and commanded to bestow what they could spare on their poor relations, and other indigent people."

That is. If thy present circumstances will not permit thee to assist others, defer thy charity till God grant thee better ability.

i.e. Be neither niggardly nor profuse, but observe the mean between the two extremes, wherein consists true liberality.

hension, and be reduced to poverty. Verily thy LORD will enlarge the store of whom he pleaseth, and will be sparing unto whom he pleaseth; for he knoweth and regardeth his servants. Kill not your children for fear of being brought to want; we will provide for them and for you: verily the killing them is a great sin.* Draw not near unto fornication; for it is wickedness, and an evil way. Neither slay the soul which GOD hath forbidden you to slay, unless for a just cause; and whosoever shall be slain unjustly, we have given his heir power to demand satisfaction; but let him not exceed the bounds of moderation in putting to death the murderer in too cruel a manner, or by revenging his friend's blood on any other than the person who killed him; since he is assisted by this law.a And meddle not with the substance of the orphan, unless it be to improve it, until he attain his age of strength: and perform your covenant; for the performance of your covenant shall be inquired into hereafter. And give full measure, when you measure aught; and weigh with a just balance. This will be better, and more easy for determining every man's due. And follow not that whereof thou hast no knowledge; for the hearing, an' the sight, and the heart, every of these shall be examined at the last day. Walk not proudly in the land, for thou canst not cleave the earth, neither shalt thou equal the mountains in stature. All this is evil, and abominable in the sight of thy LORD. These precepts are a part of the wisdom which thy LORD hath revealed unto thee. Set not up any other god as equal unto God, lest thou be cast into hell, reproved and rejected. Heth your LORD preferably granted unto you sons, and taken for himself daughters from among the angels?et Verily in asserting this ye utter a grievous saying. And now have we used various arguments and repetitions in this Korân, that they may be warned: yet it only rendereth them more disposed to fly from the truth. Say unto the idolaters, If there were other gods with him, as ye say, they would surely seek an occasion of

See chap. 6, pp. 113 and 114, and chap. 81.

The crimes for which a man may justly be put to death are these; apostacy, adultery, and murder."

It being at the election of the heir, or next of kin, either to take the life of the mur derer, or to accept of a fine in lieu of it.

a Some refer the pronoun he to the person slain, for the avenging whose death this law was made; some to the heir, who has a right granted him to demand satisfaction for his friend's blood; and others to him who shall be slain by the heir, if he carry his vengeance too far."

See chap. 4, pp. 59, 60.

Fill the measure. Hold the balance even; and you will obey the laws of justice and probity."-Savary.

Or, more advantageous in the end.

die. Vain and uncertain opinions, which thou hast not good reason to believe true, or at least probable. Some interpret the words, Accuse not another of a crime whereof thou hast no knowledge; supposing they forbid the bearing false witness, or the spreading or giving credit to idle reports of others."

See chap. 16, p. 218.

"Will you say that God has chosen you for his children, and that he has had daugh. ters by an intercourse with the angels? Can you utter this blasphemy."-Savary.