The mention of Jerusalem in the Quran

8-1-2016 | IslamWeb

Question:

How many times was Jerusalem mentioned in the Quran? Could you please write the verses (in which it talks about Jerusalem) in Arabic if you can? And could you write the verses that prove that Jerusalem once belonged to the Jews when they were Muslims? And please, I do not want links to recent fatwas about the same subject.

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

The city of Jerusalem is not mentioned with this name in the Quran, but what is mentioned is the Holy Land and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, as stated in the verse in which Allaah says (what means): {Exalted is He Who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haraam to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing.} [Quran 17:1]

Allaah says (what means): {O my people, enter the Holy Land which Allaah has assigned to you and do not turn back [from fighting in Allaah’s cause] and [thus] become losers.} [Quran 5:21]

The interpreters of the Quran differed in opinion in regard to determining the Holy Land that was mentioned in the Quran. It was said that it is Ash-Shaam (the Levant), or Jericho, or Egypt. Also, Ibn 'Asaakir reported from Mu’aath ibn Jabal that he said, “The (Holy) land is from Al-'Arish (North Sinai) to the Euphrates.” Nonetheless, what the scholars consider to be authentic about this is that the Holy Land refers to Jerusalem; this was stated by Ibn Katheer and others. For more details in this regard, you may refer to the books of interpretation of the Quran.

This verse says (what means): {…which Allaah has assigned to you…}, i.e. which Allaah has decreed for you, or which He has written for you in the Preserved Tablet that it will be a dwelling place for you; this was stated by Al-Baydhaawi in his Tafseer (interpretation of the Quran). Then Allaah said afterwards: But if you believe and obey; as Allaah said to them after they disobeyed: {Then indeed, it is forbidden to them.} [Quran 5:26]

Since they disobeyed and disbelieved, then the Land is for the people of piety and faith, i.e. for the Muslims, as Allaah says (what means): {Indeed, the earth belongs to Allaah. He causes to inherit it whom He wills of His servants. And the [best] outcome is for the righteous.} [Quran 7:128]

Allaah also says (what means): {And We have already written in the book [of Psalms] after the [previous] mention that the land [of Paradise] is inherited by My righteous servants.} [Quran 21:105]

Allaah further says (what means): {Allaah has promised those who have believed among you and done righteous deeds that He will surely grant them succession [to authority] upon the earth just as He granted it to those before them and that He will surely establish for them [therein] their religion which He has preferred for them and that He will surely substitute for them, after their fear, security, [for] they worship Me, not associating anything with Me. But whoever disbelieves after that - then those are the defiantly disobedient.} [Quran 24:55]

Ibn Katheer when interpreting this verse, said, “This is a promise from Allaah to His Messenger that He would cause his ummah (Muslim nation) to become successors on earth, i.e., they would become the leaders and rulers of mankind, through whom He would reform the world and to whom people would submit, so that they would have in exchange a safe security after their fear.”

Besides, the fatwa of Daar al-Iftaa of Egypt reads:

“Allaah saying (what means): {…enter the Holy Land which Allaah has assigned to you} [Quran 5:21]; the meaning of {assigned} is imposition and commitment, so as to clear it off from the corrupt people; this does not necessarily mean that it is their right which they acquired eternally forever and ever; it was also said that the meaning of {which Allaah has assigned to you}, is which Allaah has promised for you, and the promise does not necessarily mean that it is eternal. On the other hand, it was said that Allaah promising the land for them is linked to their obedience to Him and them carrying out the Command of Allaah in carrying out jihaad against the people who are in it. But since they did not obey, then they have no right to the Promise. There are other interpretations about the verse.

On the other hand, there are differences of opinion in regard to determining the Holy Land; it was said, 'It is Damascus, Palestine, Jerusalem and Elijah, Jordan and others.'”

Besides, Dr. Mahmoud Qadah, Professor of Aqeedah (creed), Religions, and Sects in the Islamic University of Madeenah said in his book (A Summary on the History of the Jews and Responding to Some of their False Claims):

“The Jews also claim that they have a religious right according to what was stated in their holy books that Allaah has promised them about possessing - the land of Canaan - Palestine and its neighborhoods from the Nile to the Euphrates, which is the promised land, so that it will be for them a possession and a country. They provide evidence of what was stated in the Bible that that promise was given to their father Abraham, (Ibraaheem)  when the Lord said to him, 'I give this land to your descendants, from the river of Egypt to the great river Euphrates...' The contemporary Jewish claim that they are the descendants of Abraham and his descendants, and that they are the chosen people by Allaah; so, they believe that they have more right in Palestine and the neighboring land of their fathers and forefathers...” 

Then Dr. Qadah responded to their allegations in detail, saying:

“If we assume that what they said is true about the evidence that they provided for the Divine Promise in their books, then I say: The Divine Promise had been given to Abraham upon his arrival at the land of Canaan while at that time he had no children (as in Genesis 12:7), the promise was repeated when he returned to the land of Canaan from Egypt (Genesis 13:15) and then the promise was repeated again while Abraham had no children yet. (Genesis 15: 1) Then the promise was again repeated when Abraham had Ishmael (Ismaa'eel), may Allaah exalt their mention. (Genesis 17:8)

Based on the above, the Divine Promise was given to Ishmael the grandfather of the Arabs and the Muslims and not to anyone else, because Isaac (Is-haaq), the second son of Abraham, was not yet born at that time.”

Allaah knows best.