Prophetic Career of Muhammad 3

The Light Shines in the Darkness...

The Assassinations and Executions

At the beginning of Muhammad’s “ministry”, Muhammad preached peace and acceptance, but when the Meccans rejected him, he was forced to move to Medina. There he gained power and started to raid caravans. Eventually, he gained enough power to take over entire cities including Medina and Mecca. There, he took vengeance upon those who spoke out against him and even executed hundreds of men. This practice continues today. In Pakistan, one can incur the death-penalty for blaspheming the Koran or Muhammad.

Ka’b bin al-Ashraf

Ka’b bin al-Ashraf was a Jew in the vicinity of Medina. He vocally supported the Meccans against Muhammad calling him a phony, and he even wrote poems about Muslim women in a negative light. Because of this, Muhammad was angered and called for an assassination:

Narrated Jabir Abdullah:

Allah’s messenger said, “Who is willing to kill Ka’b bin al-Ashraf who has hurt Allah and His apostle?” Thereupon Maslama got up saying, “O Allah’s messenger! Would you like that I kill him?” The prophet said, “Yes”. Maslama said, “Then allow me to say a (false) thing (i.e. to deceive Ka’b). The prophet said, “You may say it.”…

-Sahih Bukhari 5.369

After Muhammad ordered him to kill Ka’b and allowed him to lie in order to do it, Maslama and another, Abu Na’ila, killed Ka’b and reported their success to Muhammad.

Abu ‘Afak

Abu ‘Afak was a 120 year old Jewish man who thought that Muhammad’s sayings were odd and dictatorial, and he would urge Muslims to get out of Islam. Muhammad viewed Abu ‘Afak as a threat to his credibility (for a 120 year old man was certainly not a threat to his life), and so, Muhammad had Salem bin Omar kill him (see Sirat Rasul Allah by Ibn Ishaq, Guillaume’s translation, p.675).

‘Asma bint Marwan

In response to the assassination of Abu ‘Afak, ‘Asma bint Marwan, a poetess, wrote a poem against Muhammad. So, Muhammad, taking great vengeance for this small insult, had ‘Umayr bin ‘Adiy al-Khatami kill her in her sleep (see Sirat Rasul Allah by Ibn Ishaq, Guillaume’s translation, pp.675, 676)!

Sallam Ibn Abu’l Huqayq

Muhammad asked that Sallam Ibn Abu’l Huqayq be assassinated for siding against him at a battle, and again, the permission to do so was granted by Muhammad to five men. They then killed Sallam Ibn Abu’l Huqayq and were celebrated by the Muslim community (see Siratu’l Rasul vs. 714-715).

‘Uqba bin Abi Mu’ayt and Nadr bin al-Harith

After the Battle of Badr, the Muslims took about 50 prisoners. Muhammad then allowed them to be ransomed back to their families except for two that he singled out for execution, ‘Uqba bin Abi Mu’ayt and Nadr bin al-Harith. These two had personally insulted Muhammad, and thus, Muhammad would have his vengeance! T.P. Hughes gives the account:

Two days afterwards [after Nadr bin al-Harith], about half-way to Medina, Ocba, another prisoner, was ordered out for execution. He ventured to epostulate and demand why he should be treated more rigorously than the other captives. “Because of your enmity to God and to his prophet,” replied Muhammad. “And my little girl!” cried Ocba, in the bitterness of his soul, “Who will take care of her?” [Muhammad replied,] “Hellfire!”

-Thomas Hughes, A Dictionary of Islam (London: Allen & Co., 1885), p.376.

Ibn Sunayna

According to the Hadith (Sunan Abu Dawud 19.2996) and Sirat Rasul Allah, Muhammad ordered that all Jews who fell into his followers’ power should be killed. So, Muhayyisa jumped Ibn Sunayna, a Jewish merchant whom he had had close relations with, and killed him.

‘Abdullah ibn Sa’d Ibn Abi Sarh

The case of ‘Abdullah ibn Sa’d Ibn Abi Sarh is an interesting one. Sarh had been a Muslim and a scribe of Muhammad’s who wrote down parts of the Koran for Muhammad. The interesting part is that as Sarh would write down these revelations, he would make suggestions to their wording, and Muhammad would often agree to the changes! The famous early Muslim commentator on the Koran, al-Baidawi, wrote:

“To me it has been revealed’, when naught has been revealed to him refers to ‘Abdullah Ibn Sa’d Ibn Abi Sarh, who used to write for God’s messenger. The verse (23:12) that says, “We created man of an extraction of clay” was revealed, and when Muhammad reached the part that says, “…thereafter We produced him as another creature” (23:14), ‘Abdallah said, “So blessed be God the fairest of creators!” in amazement at the details of man’s creation. The prophet said, “Write it down; for thus it has been revealed.” ‘Abdallah doubted and said, “If Muhammad is truthful then I receive the revelation as much as he does, and if he is a liar, what I said is as good as what he said.”

-‘Abdallah Ibn ‘Umar al-Baidawi, Tafsir from Anwar al-Tanzil wa Asrar al-Ta’wil

The story is corroborated by al-‘Iraqi in Al-Sira. Ali Dashti, the modern Muslim historian, notes:

“Abdollah renounced Islam on the ground that the revelations, if from God, could not be changed at the prompting of a scribe such as he. After his apostasy he went to Mecca and joined the Qorayshites.”

-Ali Dashti, 23 Years: A Study of the Prophetic Career of Mohammed (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1985), p.98.

Later, when Muhammad took over Mecca, he tried to have Sarh executed because Sarh knew too much and spoke about the changes in the Koran too often!

The Nine Other Meccans

When Muhammad captured Mecca, other than Sarh, he had nine other people ordered to be executed. Muhammad had to have his vengeance!

The Jews of Qurayza

This one tops them all! Muhammad had a bad habit of raiding indefensible Jewish settlements, and in March 627 A.D., after a battle, Muhammad ordered the beheading of between 600 and 900 men of the Jewish clan of Qurayza, one of his political enemies at Medina. He then sold the women and children into slavery.

Hiding Something?

Apparently, Muhammad did not like people testing him to see if he was a true prophet or not. On occasion he would get very angry:

“Allah has hated you…[for] asking too many questions.”

-Sahih Bukhari 2.555, also 3.591

“The Prophet was asked about things which he did not like, when the questioner insisted, the Prophet got angry.”

-Sahih Bukhari 1.92

When it was clear that this kind of behavior of his was starting to make the people doubt that he was a prophet,

“The Prophet told them repeatedly [in anger] to ask him anything they liked.”

-Sahih Bukhari 1.30

Since Muhammad claimed to be a prophet, one man asked Muhammad where his lost camel was. In response,

“The Prophet got angry and his cheeks or his face became red.”

-Sahih Bukhari 1.91

Why did Muhammad not like questions? The clear answer is found in the Koran itself:

“Ask not questions about things which, if made plain to you may cause you trouble…Some people before you did ask such questions, and on account lost their faith (in Islam).”

-Sura 5:101-102

In his commentary on the Koran, Abdullah Mandudi explains this passage:

“The Holy Prophet himself forbade people to ask questions…so do not try to probe into such things.”

-Abdullah Mandudi, The Meaning of the Qur’an (Lahore, Pakistan: Islamic Publishers Ltd., 1967), Vol. III, pp.76-77.

Robert Morey comments:

“The questions were not the problem. When the answers were “made plain” it caused people to lose their faith in Islam. Whenever people tell you not to ask questions because if you find the answers you will lose your faith in them, they are trying to hide something…We must ask ourselves, “What kind of god is Allah who hates people for asking questions?” This is not like the God of the Bible who encourages us to ask, to seek and to knock! Why is Muhammad pictured as hating those who asked him questions? Why were people warned not to ask questions? What is Islam trying to hide? Is Islam so weak that merely asking questions threatens to destroy it? Do Muslims assume that blind faith is the way to Islam?”

-Robert Morey, Winning the War Against Radical Islam (Las Vegas, NV: Christian Scholars Press, 2002), p.2.

Obviously, the reason why people were warned not to ask questions is because if they probed just enough, they would find out that Muhammad was a con-artist and not a prophet.

Other Immoral Actions

The Koran says that Muhammad is to be the highest moral example for all Muslims (Sura 33:21). However, as one examines the historical sources, one can see that Muhammad was not a very good moral example at all!

Pedophilia

As mentioned above, Muhammad had a convenient “revelation” that told him to marry Abu Bakr’s daughter, ‘Aisha. What makes it worse is the fact that she was only 6 years old when she wed Muhammad, and Muhammad consummated that marriage when ‘Aisha was only 9! This was recorded in many places in the Hadith (emphasis mine):

“Narrated ‘Ursa:
The Prophet wrote the (marriage contract) with ‘Aisha while she was six years old and consummated his marriage with her while she was nine years old and she remained with him for nine years (i.e. till his death).”

-excerpt from Sahih Bukhari 7.88

This has been confirmed in other Hadiths (Sahih Bukhari 5.234, 5.236, 7.64-65, Sunan Abu Da’ud 41.4915-4917)! Just about nothing could put someone further from being a moral example than pedophilia.

Hypocrisy: Having a Will

According to the Hadith, Muhammad ordered that everyone make a will in case of death. However, Muhammad himself did not make a will (!):

“I asked Abdullah bin Abu Aufa, “Did the Prophet make a will?” He replied, “No.” I asked him, “How is it then that the making of a will has been enjoined on people?””

-Sahih Bukhari 4.3 and 4

This is why Islam eventually broke up into the warring Sunni and Shiite sects. The fact that Muhammad commanded that every good Muslim make a will but that he himself did not only shows his hypocrisy.

Gained Wealth, Power, and Women

As a result of his so-called “revelations”, Muhammad gained wealth, power, and women. He went from being a little merchant in the city of Mecca to an emperor who got whatever he wanted whenever he wanted! As Aisha supposedly told Muhammad, “I see your Allah quickly grants you your desire.”

Muhammad can accurately be compared to just about every other cult leader that has ever arisen. Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, for example, went from being an ordinary town drunkard to the leader of an entire religious group. He supposedly received revelations from God that told him that polygamy was okay. He was said to have had 27 wives. Later, Brigham Young, the leader of Mormonism after Joseph’s death, said that if anyone did not believe in polygamy, they would go to hell! He was said to have had 25 wives.

In contrast to Muhammad and Joseph Smith, Jesus Christ lived a life of holiness (2 Corinthians 5:21). He gave up his family and everything that he had including his life for the truth. When he was going to be made the King of Israel by a crowd of 5,000, he fled to a mountain to pray (John 6:15). He refused to be given earthly riches and power, and instead, He said that His kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36). Instead of hording wealth, He gave it to the poor (Matthew 19:21). Instead of living in palaces, he had nowhere to lay his head (Luke 9:58). When he could have gained more power by kissing up to the Pharisees, he instead did the right thing by rebuking them (Luke 11:37-54). Instead of telling the crowds what they wanted to hear, he told them the truth with conviction which led to many nominal followers to fall away (John 6:26-66).

The difference between Muhammad and Jesus could not be starker! In Jesus Christ, mankind has the perfect example of a life of selflessness and charity, but in the case of Muhammad, we have a perfect example of someone who received convenient “revelations” to suit himself and his own well-being. As a result of these convenient “revelations”, Muhammad gained great earthly power, wealth, and women.

Conclusion

The Bible gives us the sign of how to distinguish between true and false prophets:

“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.”

-Matthew 7:15-20 (NASB)

Every part of Muhammad’s life points to the fact that he was a false prophet.

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Unless stated otherwise, all Koran quotes are from Pickthall’s translation.

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