Message #7050

[Heba E. Husseyn]

Well yes, all these unconfirmed details about Prophet Abraham's family relations come from the altered Christian Bible, Genesis 16:1-16 (Hagar and Ishmael).  I don't have the time to look for it now, but in a few days InshAllah, I'll put up this Bible story and Hadith which has plagiarised this idea. 

I'll first briefly touch the points which the Quran confirms and then those points which the Quran does not mention.  Eventually I'll sum up how we, as believers of the Quran only, must interpret the family relationships of Prophet Abraham. 

Sacredness of Safa and Marwa is mentioned in the Quran in Verse 2:158
 
"Lo! (the mountains) Al-Safa and Al-Marwah are among the indications of Allah. It is therefore no sin for him who is on pilgrimage to the House (of God) or visits it, to go around them (as the pagan custom is). And he who does good of his own accord (for him), Lo! Allah is Responsive {Ash-Shakir}, Aware {Al-`Alim}"   2:158  Al-Baqrah

Just the same way as the sacredness of Mount Arafat is also mentioned in Verse 2:198
 
"It is no sin for you that you seek the bounty of your Lord (by trading). But, when you press on in the multitude from Arafat, remember Allah by the sacred monument. Remember Him as He has guided you, although before you were of those astray"  2:198  Al-Baqrah

So, by reading the above verses, we learn and know that landmarks such as Safa, Marwa and Arafat are sacred from the time of Prophet Abraham.  But we are not told the precise historical events that took place in these places and contributed in making them sacred.  Therefore, we cannot presume about those stories mentioned in the altered Bible and Hadith.  Since the Quran does not mention the stories of Sarah and Hagar, we cannot take them as confirmations from the changed and man-written Bible and Hadith. 

Of Prophet Abraham's immediate family, the Quran only mentions the names of the two sons of Abraham, Ishmael (Ismail) and Isaac (Ishaq).  By reading Verses 37:100-113, it's apparent that Ismael was the older son. 
 
The Quran does not mention the names of Abraham's wife or wives.  Neither the name Sarah (Sarai) nor the name Hagar are stated anywhere in the Quran.   The Quran never mentions that Prophet Abraham had a slavegirl in  his household nor that the slavegirl was the mother of one of his sons. 

The Quran makes absolutely no mention that Prophet Abraham abandoned one of his sons and his mother in the desert neither does the Quran refer that Allah commanded him to do that.   The Quran only contains the information that Allah Almighty told Abraham in a dream to sacrifice his son.  This was not a command but only a test of Abraham's faith.  Hence when Prophet Abraham proved the strength of his faith in Allah by showing his willingness to do what he was told, Allah at once stopped him from sacrificing his son and placed a sheep in its stead.

The Quran does not state about any Prophet having a slave or slaves in their households.  Take the example of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).  Zaid, the Prophet's adopted son was a freed slave.  Bilal, a black slave, was freed after he became acquainted with the Prophet and embraced Islam.  Marya, a Coptic slave of Egypt embraced Islam was made a free woman before she married the Prophet,  being known as the 'mother of believers' along with the other wives of the Prophet.   You will read many non-Muslim accounts and also the writings of some hardline traditionalist Muslims who say or surmise that Marya was a concubine.  Not true at all.  Even though in that era, intimacy with a slavegirl was legal as in the case with one's spouse, Marya was neither a slave nor a concubine.  She was legally married to the Prophet and was a free woman.  A very thorough Muslim historian, Sheikh Abdul Majid Subh, states: "Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), instead of taking concubines, entered into lawful marriages based on reason and wisdom. Maria the Copt was given to him as a present, but rather than taking her as a concubine, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) married her, thus elevating her status by marriage.”   This opinion is supported by all unbiased Muslim and non-Muslim analysts.  Not to mention, the Quran forbids concubines and there's no question that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) nor any of the Prophets would take concubines.

" .. the virtuous women of the believers and the virtuous women of those who received the Scripture before you (lawful for you) when ye give them their marriage portions and live with them in honour, not in fornication, nor taking them as secret concubines."  5:5 Al-Maidah

Coming to the crux of the matter and the answer to your question on Prophet Abraham's immediate family relationships, as Muslims who adhere to the Glorious Quran only, we cannot go into any personal or family gossips of any of the Prophets simply because the Quran does not give us any reasons nor evidences to do that.  In the case of Prophet Abraham, as believers we can only accept and teach others the following aspects ....

Prophet Abraham had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac.  Isaac was born when Abraham and his wife were elderly. 

"And his wife, standing by laughed when We gave her good tidings (of the birth) of Isaac, and, after Isaac, of Jacob.
She said: Oh woe is me! Shall I bear a child when I am an old woman, and this my husband is an old man ? Lo! this is a strange thing!" 
They said: Wonderest thou at the commandment of Allah ? The mercy of Allah and His blessings be upon you, O people of the house! Lo! He is Owner of Praise, Owner of Glory!"
11:71-73

Ishmael was apparently born earlier.  Check Verses 37:100-113.  No details about Ishmael's mother are given in the Quran.  Whether Ishmael's mother was the same as Isaac's or someone else, only Allah knows best.  Since Allah has not mentioned these details, this does NOT give us the authority to start speculating and picking up guesswork-confirmations from the altered Bible and the faked Hadiths.   Abraham with his son (or sons) lived in Makkah and built the Kaabah, the first place ever constructed for the worship of Allah Almighty alone.  Prior to living in Makkah, we do not know where Abraham and his family lived, because again, the Quran does not mention it.  We know that Prophets Jacob and Joseph were the direct descendents of Prophet Isaac, son of Prophet Abraham.   This is all that we should be talking about and teaching others concerning the family of Prophet Abraham.