Reading the Bible and the Qur'an Together
Henry Martyn Seminar – February 15th 2012
This seminar is a reflection on the implications of some contemporary insights which
suggest commonalities between the form of units of text in the Bible (the Hebrew
Bible, or what I as a Christian know as the Old Testament, with the New Testament)
and the Qur'an.
To my best knowledge that was not something which was of
concern to Henry Martyn. Where I have overlapping concerns with him, I think, is in
the desire to create a means by which the interests of scripture-text can be made an
accessible basis for informed dialogue between Muslims and Christians, and indeed
Jews. However, the commonality which I am taking as foundational is not Abraham
or other characters common to each of our traditions but, rather, the mode of
presentation of ideas. I think the best term for mode of presentation is 'rhetoric', but
to distinguish the mode which is common to the scriptures of Jews, Christians and
Muslims from ideas of persuasive embellishment that draw on Greco-Roman
definitions of 'rhetoric', for convenience I follow others in calling the mode 'semitic
rhetoric'.
Before I turn to illustrating what I mean, and through examples set out the
implications of reading in the light of rhetorical form (which, as we shall see, is not the
same as genre), let me briefly give context for my relatively recent engagement with
the topic.
Like Henry Martyn I have engaged in Christian ministry in an Urdu
speaking context: my days with the Bible Correspondence School give me some
familiarity with ways in which the scriptures have tended to be used in inter-faith
conversation in Pakistan. I have never been to Iran, but have visited in the Gulf as
well as living for a period in Cairo. An important outcome of that time was a deeper
familiarity with the Orthodox church, including the ways in which they engage with
scripture.
For a while I also had some involvement with the Programme for
Theological Education by Extension in the arabic-speaking world. However, it was
after I returned to the UK (to be supportive to my ageing mother) that I was drawn
into reconsidering some of my conclusions about the interests and emphases in the
Bible on the basis of the structure of texts. Given the contexts in which I have lived
and worked for much of my adult life it was natural to wonder if there was anything
similar in the Qur'an. I had originally expected not. However, not only do my own
explorations persuade me otherwise, but I have found that there are a small but
growing number of scholars of the Qur'an, currently engaged in analysis and writing,
who are presenting evidence for coherency in the interests of large portions, or whole
suras, on the basis of rhetorical structure.
Henry Martyn was a man of his time. Those of you who attended the first seminar in
this series commemorating his life and work will have reflected on that fact. This
seminar is of our time in that it is dealing with insights that have been (re-) emerging
in the last forty years, and even more recently. Let me summarize.
a) A seminal moment in biblical studies was the address given to the Society of
Biblical Literature in 1969 by James Muilenburg. In this he stated (1989:8) that:
'What I am interested in, above all, is understanding the nature of
Hebrew literary
composition, exhibiting the structural patterns that are
employed for the fashioning of
a literary unit, whether in poetry or in
prose, and in discerning the many and various
devices
predictions are formulated and ordered into a unified whole.
by
which
Such
the
an
enterprise I should describe as rhetoric and the methodology as rhetorical
criticism.'
Particularly since that time it has become a commonplace in biblical scholarship for
such rhetorical criticism to be a primary tool for interpreting scripture text. Amongst
important exponents are Phyllis Trible and Walter Brueggemann, who cite
Muilenberg as their teacher (Trible, 1984:ix). I will be making reference to them later.
b) Fresh observations are still being made and debated in New Testament
scholarship.
A particularly relevant work is Kenneth E. Bailey's recent Jesus
Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels (SPCK, 2008). He
insists that understanding of the biblical text is frequently distorted by being read with
little awareness of the culture in which it came into being, and that a characteristic of
that culture is discourse typified by repetitions, or what literary critics describe as
parallelisms, inclusios, chiasms and ring structures.
c)
Meanwhile, detailed work identifying such structures in the Qur'an began to
emerge from the 1980s, but especially since the turn of the millennium: Neal
Robinson confesses to having become convinced that chiasmus is an important
organizational principle, with implications for interpretation of qur'anic suras, between
writing the first (1996) and editing the second edition of Discovering the Qur'an: A
Contemporary Approach to a Veiled Text (2003:xiii). A number of scholars working
in the area suggest that these are the rhetorical structures in the text which constitute
the naẓm that is core to the inimitable nature of the Qur'an (see especially AbdulRaof (2001) and Cuypers (2011)).
I suggest that these common developments in the interpretation of our sacred texts
should inform the conversations we have around their interests. I have found that
typically conversation about subject matter common to the Bible and the Qur'an has
tended to deal in isolated units, and so fed
the tendency for comparisons to
comprise of an exchange of traditional interpretation and exegetical lore, which is
certainly a valid inter-faith activity, but one which leaves questions of congruence
between the interests of the texts unresolved. The alternative which I propose, of
tracking the interests and emphases in textual portions which are identified by tracing
word clusters (Leitwort), unifying themes, particular modes of expression, and
boundary markers, does often require us to give attention to larger expanses of text.
Nevertheless, what I hope to show is that, even though personal bias may impact the
interpretive process, the method provides an even-handed way for exploring the
congruence of interests of the texts and so a basis for shared, open reflection.
To demonstrate the importance of form and rhetoric for understanding our faiths I am
using sample texts which feature female characters. I will set out two primary
examples from the Old Testament where recognition that the texts are shaped
according to principles of semitic rhetoric has invited review of established
interpretations.
Using figures, in order to be concise, I demonstrate structural
relationships within the texts, highlighting their interpretative significance. In each
case I supplement the observations by showing parallels and differences in texts with
which they resonate, found elsewhere in the Bible and the Qur'an. In this way I hope
to illustrate the implications of attentiveness to rhetorical form for across faiths
conversation. To provide closing summary I will take one further sura to show how
rhetorical form suggests leading interests.
As this is an introductory overview intended to show how such an approach might
inform our conversations I do not dwell long on fine details. This is not to say that
they are not there: evidence of repetition, parallelism and ring structures are found at
the macro – whole book or whole sura - level, at the micro – single verse - level, and
also at the middle level, so that, for example, there are portions in parallel and rings
within rings. Cuypers argues that all analysis must start at the micro level (Cuypers,
2011:5). To demonstrate and explore implications, and to gain a feel for its intuitive
impact amongst those for whom the form was 'common sense', I suggest though that
it is helpful to be introduced through big picture. To do this I, on occasions, refer to
one or other of the seven conventions which social anthropologist Mary Douglas has
summarised as characterising semitic rhetoric (Douglas, 2007: 36-38, 126).
The importance of rhetorical form:
1. Hannah in the Book of Samuel:
I start with this unlikely part of the Hebrew Bible because it illustrates the
interpretative significance, in terms of identifying theological interest of a discourse,
when rhetorical structure is taken as a major clue to meaning. As it happens it does
also have implications for conversations about the presentations of Mary in the Bible
and in the Qur'an.
Appreciation of rhetorical structures in Hebrew text has, in more recent years,
brought into question the long standing conclusion that Samuel-Kings is simply a
badly redacted succession narrative (eg., Brueggemann, 1992:219-234, 235-251).
Recognition that the final form of the book of Samuel is a ring structure, in which
Hannah serves as a major clue to the principle that the humble are raised and the
mighty brought low, has contributed to fresh understanding of leading interests in the
book
The structure shows the book to be theologically sophisticated, with an
interweaving of references to those without institutionally sanctioned social, political
and religious power, and who are mainly women, which subvert notions of what is
important for the outworking of divine purposes.
Figure 1: Structure in the Book of Samuel
Macro-structure
HANNAH
 problem
 at the place of sacrifice
 prayer
Hannah’s Song
(1 Samuel 2:1-10)
[Yahweh, rock, horn, thundering, raising humble, bringing
mighty down]
Lament: ‘How the mighty are fallen’ (2 Samuel 1:19-27)
'Appendix' (2 Samuel 21-24)
Famine
David prayed
Rizpah’s action prompts honourable action
God answers prayer on behalf of the land
David’s Song
(2 Samuel 22:2-51)
[Yahweh, rock, horn, thundering, raising humble, bringing
mighty down]
Plague
David prayed
Finally David acts honourably
Yahweh answers prayer on behalf of the land
• problem
• at the place of sacrifice
• prayer
DAVID
Figure 1 sets out the overall structure of the book of Samuel, highlighting
correspondence between the story involving Hannah at the beginning and David at
the end.
It shows the final form to be enveloped by the recounting of divine
intervention as 'God answered prayer' (1 Sam. 1:20, 2 Sam. 21:14 and 24:25). The
form also enables recognition of a shift in the locus of cultic worship (Shiloh at the
start, and the threshing floor of Arunah, later the site of the temple, at the end), allied
to the unchanging and emphasised principle that high-handedness results in a fall,
whilst humility leads to exoneration.
At first glance the book of Samuel is dominated by powerful male characters. It is,
however, notable that powerless female characters impact outcomes. (I give one
example, but interesting alternatives could have been chosen.) It is noteworthy that
none of the male agents who dominate the scene in which Rizpah is introduced
actually affect the development of events as they had intended. A woman who has
appeared as mere collateral, in the exchanges between Ishbosheth, Abner and David
(2 Sam. 3:7), reappears as an agent with resolve whose action impacts the
denouement of the narrative (2 Sam. 21:1-14), inviting attentive readers to reconsider
the conclusions they have been making as they have progressed through the
accounts. Further, the significance of the women is not predicated by their capacity
to bear children, though they are characterised by the tendency to protect and value
life. Even though Hannah does bear a child who will become an important male
leader, her significance in the text arises not simply from her capacity to produce
sons but through her independent faith-based initiative expressed in prayer. (These
are emphasised in the 'middle-level' and 'micro-level' structures of the opening
chapter). The male characters who are counterparts to her story are, much as in
other stories of barren women in the Bible (see Alter 1981, 1983), shown by
comparison to be (bumbling and) inadequate. Overall, when read in the light of
semitic rhetoric, the book of Samuel does not seem to be enamoured of male power,
but to provide critique which is nuanced by the interplay of gendered characters, and
especially by the initiatives of women to promote, sustain, nurture and protect life.
1.1.
Related material for comparative conversation:
a) Of Mary in the Gospel of Luke:
In the New Testament these intertwined interests of women and of prayer, and the
principle that the humble are exalted and the mighty brought low, are particularly
picked up in the Gospel of Luke. The Gospel of Luke carries strong allusions to the
opening of the book of Samuel and has overlapping theological emphases. These
are evident in stories related to prayer (Luke18) and in more numerous matching
accounts of women and men, such as the attention given to Anna as well as Simeon
(2:25-35), sabbath healings (13:10-17, 14:1-6), parables (eg., 15:1-8, 8-10, being the
stories about the lost sheep and the lost coin). The opening chapter evokes various
comparisons with events in the Old Testament: the stories of the aged and childless
Abraham and Sarah, the birth of Samson, and interaction between Ruth and Naomi,
and Deborah and Jael, but especially the story of Hannah and Samuel all find echoes
in the accounts of Zechariah, Elizabeth and Mary. It is also, to coin Bauckham's
(2002:49) term 'gynocentrically gendered', with the meeting of Mary and Elizabeth at
its heart.
Significant events in the Temple flank the the first two chapters, whilst events in the
central part, in particular the births, are located away from the cultic centre (in hill
country, home, desert, inn, and fields).
Chapter 1:5-80
Context provided
Family
Chapter 2:1-42
Context provided
(Temple)
Family
Annunciation (x2)
Annunciation
Responses
Responses
Statement (child growing)
Statement (child growing)
(Temple)
Statement (child growing)
(Temple)
In echoes of the way the story of Samuel's birth creates anticipation of what is to
follow (1 Samuel 2:26) the parallel sections culminate with summary statements
about the maturing of the children who have been born (Luke 1:80, 2:40,52). The
double ending is a characteristic device of ring-structures (Douglas, 2007:126).
Mary is the main agent in the opening two chapters. The song she gives voice to
after her encounter with Elizabeth echoes that of Hannah in Samuel, setting out
themes that will emerge in the narrative to follow, including the theme of reversal:
'He has brought rulers down from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble' (Luke 1:52)
b) Of Mary in Surat Āl 'Imrān (Q3):
Turning to the Qur'an we find there is clear resonance between Surat Āl 'Imrān and
the opening of the Gospel of Luke, in that they both give account of the
annunciations of the births of John the Baptist (Yaḥyā in the Qur'an) and of Jesus
(ʿIsā in the Qur'an). In the sura too, the stories are set in the context of prayer, with
women as lead characters, and it also engages with the principle of humility as an
attribute of faith. There are echoes of the Magnificat (Mary's song) if not of the songs
of Hannah and David [see Figure 3].
The Qur'an scholar, Angelika Neuwirth (2005:244, 2010:528) proposes that the initial
influence on Mary's song, in the Gospel of Luke, is a Maccabean war song, whilst the
detail in Surat Āl-ʿImrān reflects familiarity with the morning and evening offices of
Syriac Christian liturgical services which involve the reciting of the Magnificat and the
Benedictus (Zechariah's song, Luke 1:68-79).
Rhetorical analysis cannot give
categorical response to Neuwirth's proposals (Charlesworth (1982) provides grounds
for understanding that it was not uncommon for Jews, and Jewish Christians, of the
Second Temple period to rework hymns around traditional themes and phrases).
With regard to Mary's song I have already given reasons for recognizing an
intentional relationship between the songs in the Gospel of Luke and in the Book of
Samuel.
Analysis of the sura also suggests purposefulness rather than mere
dependency in these qur'anic resonances with Christian material.
Figure 3
I Samuel 2
2 Samuel 22
Luke 1
Sura 3:26
He brings low, He also
exalts.
He raises the poor from the
dust, He lifts the needy from
the ash heap To make them
You save the humble, but
your eyes are on the haughty
to bring them low....
....
He has brought down rulers
from their thrones, And has
exalted those who were
humble.
He has filled the hungry with
Say: O God, Master of the
Kingdom
You give kingship to whom
you please
And take away the kingship
sit with nobles, And inherit a
seat of honor; For the pillars
of the earth are the LORD's,
And He set the world on
them
He keeps the feet of His
godly ones, But the wicked
ones are silenced in
darkness; For not by might
shall a man prevail.
Those who contend with the
LORD will be shattered;
Against them He will
thunder in the heavens, The
LORD will judge the ends of
the earth; And He will give
strength to His king, And
will exalt the horn of His
anointed.
The God who executes
vengeance for me, And
brings down peoples under
me,
Who also brings me out
from my enemies; Thou dost
even lift me above those
who rise up against me;
Thou dost rescue me from
the violent man.
Therefore I will give thanks
to Thee, O LORD, among
the nations, And I will sing
praises to Thy name.
He is a tower of deliverance
to His king, And shows
loving-kindness to His
anointed, To David and his
descendants forever.
good things; And sent away
the rich empty-handed.
He has given help to Israel
His servant, In remembrance
of His mercy,
As He spoke to our fathers,
To Abraham and his
offspring forever.
from whom you please.
You exalt whom You please
and humble whom you
please
In Your Hand is all the good,
And You have the power
over everything!
On the basis of language and thematic develop I find that the sura has two, almost
equally sized, major portions.
It shows emphasis at beginning and end on the
creedal assertion, lā ilāha illā huwa – 'There is no god but He' (3:2, 6, 18), whilst, at a
macro-level, portions in the central material are identifiable by the way the sura
addresses Christians and the Muslim community.
Figure 3: Structure of Surat Āl ʿImrān (Q3)
1
Alif Lam Mim
2-30
Creed
31-99
People of the Book
31-61 Mary & Jesus
(62) Creed
Oh
64-99 Abraham (& other prophets)
100-180
Believers
100-120 on relating to People of the Book
121-148 Coping with battle loss
Oh
149-189 resisting unbelievers /People of the Book
190-200
Creed
The content also shows that, at the time (following the battles of Badr and Uhud),
interaction with People of the Book was causing some confusion within the newly
formed community. Affirmative statements about the practices of some People of the
Book, possibly monks or priests (3:17), and of characters foundational to the
Christian account of monotheism, are counter-balanced by warnings about possible
negative influence. Structure shows this to be of central concern.
However, the kind of deference given to the women characters, Mary and her
mother, is unusual in the Qur'an. By implication their prayers affect change. Mary is
identified as chosen (iṣṭafāki) above all women (3:42) in a way which associates her
with the leading prophets of previous epochs (Adam, Noah, Abraham's family, and
the family of 'Imran, chosen (iṣṭafā) 'over all people' – 3:33). Nevertheless, the text
makes clear that Mary, the prayerful, was made fit for her chosenness because God
made her grow in purity (3:36,37). The earlier phrases which echo the Magnificat
also shift all emphasis to the initiative of God: Q3:26 recounts God's sovereignty,
stating, 'You give control to whoever you will and remove it from whoever You will;
You elevate whoever You will and humble whoever You will...' (Abdel Haleem trans.).
The phrase no longer sets out a principle of reversal that gives hope to the
marginalised, as found in both Samuel and Luke, but asserts the controlling power of
God.
To summarise: Consideration of Hannah and the book of Samuel has drawn
attention to the way the book carries a critique of leadership through its narrative
demonstration that the humble are lifted up whilst those who are high-handed are
brought low. Within this (are) women (who) embody the values and concerns of
Yahweh.
The form and content of the Gospel of Luke echo this.
There are
continuities in Surat Āl ʿImrān, but also discontinuity created by the emphasis on the
initiatives of Allāh.
2. Of the wife of Adam (Eve) and the Book of Genesis:
To show that this is not a lone illustration of the impact of interpreting in the light of
semitic rhetoric I turn to another portion of the Hebrew Bible, where application of the
principles has shifted the contours of debate. I simply summarise detail not usually
drawn on when Eve is the focus of comparison.
Tribles's 1972 paper on Genesis 2-3 and her book God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality
(1978) have had a seminal role in awakening awareness that attention to rhetorical
elements in a text affects interpretation. Her attempts to 'depatriarchalise' reading of
the Hebrew Bible has also inspired re-reading of the Qur'an by some Muslim women
scholars.
My understanding of the rhetorical interests of the Genesis material are similar to
Trible's, though I have, further, been drawn to conclude that there is an over-arching
structure to the whole of Genesis which the opening chapters mirror, and it is on that
I want to briefly reflect, as it again highlights the effect of reading in the light of the
broader text rather than atomistically.

Good (tob) is a key opening term (Genesis 1). Evil (ra') is secondary, and in
the denouement the evil enacted by Joseph's brothers is declared to be
serving the good which God has been accomplishing (Genesis 50:20).

If we recognise Genesis to be in four major portions, the first and the last
feature man/ humanity in the image of God/ representing the god king
Pharaoh established to exercise dominion over the earth and its produce,
whilst the two central portions are especially dominated by the relationship
between husband and wife.
Likewise, the frame of Genesis 2-4 is the
relationship of humanity to humus, adam to adamah whilst at heart is the
relationship of man and woman, ish and ishshah:
hā'ādām/ha'adāmāh (2:4b-17) - ish/ ishshah (2:18-3:16) - hā'ādām/ha'adāmāh (3:17-24)

The Genesis material presents woman as an active and articulate
corresponding partner, both valued, and sharing culpability in the breakdown
in relationships. The account of the Primal couple, including the incident in the
garden, has a certain open-endedness about where blame lies. It sets the
scene for dynamics which the ensuing narratives explore. Women are key
participants in the unfolding events, not just through child-bearing, but in
practical and ethical ways.
Notably, in the fourth portion, mirrored words
indicate resonance between the story of Eve and the stories involving Tamar
and Potiphar's wife. The wit and initiative of Tamar promotes recognition of
righteousness (38:26) whilst Potiphar's wife acts wickedly (ra' – 39:9).
Importantly the initiative of Tamar triggers the conscience of Judah in
readiness for initiatives he will take in the denouement of the Genesis epic.

What Genesis establishes about Eve is that she is neither the source of
wisdom nor originator of life, but for all that she is an important, that is,
integral, participant in the commission to fill the earth and have dominion over
it.
2.1.
The wife of Adam in the Qur'an
There are seven qur'anic accounts which include the refusal by Iblis to bow down to
humanity (Q2:30-39, Q7:11-25, Q15:28-43, Q17:61-65, Q18:50, Q20:116-123,
Q38:71-85). Five of these refer specifically to Adam, out of which three recall events
in the Garden and make reference to Adam's wife. She is not mentioned anywhere
else.
Structure brings out interests and emphasis in Surat al-Aʿrāf (Q7) and Surat alBaqara (Q2), whilst seeming to corroborate suggestions that in Q20 (Surat Ṭa Ḥa)
the account of the deception of the Primal Couple was probably not part of the
original sura [Gilliott, 2003:519].
Sura Ṭa Ḥa (Q20):
In what is probably the oldest of the three suras the woman is merely an
acknowledged presence beside Adam, under threat of the guile of Iblis (Q20:117).
She is indicated, also, in the dual form of the verb, sharing in eating from the tree,
becoming conscious of being naked and attempting to hide the condition (Q20:121).
It is Adam who disobeyed his Lord, and whom his Lord brought back, accepting his
repentance, and guiding him.
Surat al-Aʿrāf (Q7):
There is a rich interweaving of Leitwort in Surat al-Aʿrāf. A recent PhD which explores
repetition and the related roles of asymmetry in the Qur'an (Abo Haggar, 2011)
has an extensive chapter tracking some of them. The work shows how the multiple
examples in the sura work to invite the interpreter to compare and contrast
different sections in a rich and coherent presentation of the call to pursue piety and
heed guidance. To that I would add observations about the use and distribution of
terms referring to place and familial relationships, which give further pause for
thought to what is being said about responses of arrogance (istakbara 7:36, 40,
75, 76, 88, 133, cf., 7:13 and 7:206) and rejecting, denying, belying (root kzb 7:36,
37, 40, 64, 72, 89, 92, 96, 101, 136, 146, 147, 176, 177, 182), rather than
thankfulness (root Sh-k-r 7:10, 17, 58, 144, 189), toward the message which God's
prophets bring.
The Garden story comes early in Surat al-Aʿrāf. It opens with the explanation 'Verily, we
have established you on earth' (v.10). It has a shift in tone half-way through. The first half
(vv. 11-18) tells of humanity's creation and Satan's refusal to bow to Adam. The second
(vv. 19-25) takes up the story of Adam and his wife in the words, 'O Adam! Dwell
peacefully – uskun – with your wife' (v.19).
However, Satan whispers, and being
deceived the couple eat from the tree. When they repent, they are both told to get out
and warned about enmity they will experience. The story concludes with the explanation
'On earth you will have a place to stay and livelihood – for a time. ... 'There you shall live;
there you shall die; from there you will be brought out' (vv. 24, 25). The next section
begins with warnings to the 'Children of Adam' (see especially verses 26, 27 and 31) not
to be seduced as their parents were in the Garden.
The sura is centred. Some repeated phrases serve as section markers. Portions have
thematic interests. Various recurring statements indicate a repeated theme, recapitulating
elements in the initial story, showing that in succeeding generations there are those who
are beguiled and reject God's signs. Some reinforce the sense that this is at Satan's
instigation (7:27, 175, 200, 201) The correspondences, with the centring, indicate that the
sura is a ring structure:
A vv1-9
B
Introduction: Book and punished towns
vv10-25 creation of humanity, Adam & zawjaha (as comfort), Satan whispers
C
vv26-58 Children of Adam: exhortation and warning (to)
D
vv 59-99
E
Prophets & resistance (narratives)
vv100-102
inherit earth, messengers rejected, towns
broke covenant
D¹
vv 103-171
Moses: resistance of Pharaoh, and of his own people
(narratives)
C¹
B¹
vv172-188
vv189-202
A¹ vv203-206
Children of Adam: exhortation and warning (related to)
creation of humanity, man & zawjaha (as comfort), Satan prompts
Conclusion: pay attention to Qur'an
Verse 189 renews thoughts of the original creation:
“It is He who created you all from one soul, and from it made its mate
(zawjaha)
so that he might find comfort (li-yaskuna) in her ...”
Here and in verse 19 the sura is presenting a consistent message about the purpose
for which the female spouse is created; that her husband might 'yaskun ilayhā'. This
has relevance to the discussion initiated by Wadud (1999) and Barlas (2002) about
the egalitarian meaning of the word zawja based on Q4:1, an ayah which they insist
is not making reference to Adam and his wife. The parallel structure and the detail in
the qualifying phrase in this sura (Surat al-Aʿrāf) suggests, contrary to their
proposition, that this is what the phrase about nafs and zawj is ultimately alluding to,
though not with any intrinsic hierarchical implications.
Correspondence creates allusive parallels between the actions of Adam and his wife
and other couples. There are some strange aḥādīth related to this (see Spellberg,
1996:314-319), but no narrative developed in the sura. Rather, in the context of other
references to familial relationships, this vignette allusively hints at the way false belief
has emerged in succeeding generations. The paralleled pieces indicate that there is
nothing wrong with marriage, and no blame apportioned to woman. The problem is to
do with corporate disobedience and idolatrous associations made. The solution is
piety and obedience to the revealed guidance.
Surat al-Baqara (Q2):
Reference to the wife of Adam comes early in Surat al-Baqara, in a unit of ten
verses that tell of the encounter of the couple with Iblis in the Garden (2:30 -39).
The preceding material opens with mysterious letters (2:1) and a short section
concerned with 'the book' as revelation from God (2:2-7), followed immediately by
a section warning of judgement. It is the first such section in the qur'anic canon. It
includes a single verse which describes the believers' reward as a paradisical
garden in which there are azwājun muṭahharatun - 'pure spouses' (2:25). Thus, in
the Qur'an, and in this sura, the first mention of a garden is concerned with
rewards of the hereafter, in terms of conjugal relationships. As Robinson
(2003:206) observes, 'the gardens, which the believers and their spouses are
promised in the hereafter (v.25), represent a return to the blessed state originally
enjoyed by Adam and his spouse (v.35).'
In recent years a number of scholars have proposed that the material in Surat alBaqara is in parallel sections (Mir, 1993:215-6, Robinson, 2003:203-223, Zahniser,
2000). There are close similarities in their works, with slight divergences in their
decisions about the
parameters of the Abrahamic material.
I think that one
reason for this is that they have overlooked the chiastic nature of the sura, which I
judge to be centred on the qibla.
A Prologue
vv.1-29
B Lessons in Story
vv. 30-121
founding the'house'
vv. 122-141
O children of Israel:
C Abraham & the Ka'aba
vv. 122-167
vv.142-152
qibla /Ka'aba/ sacred
vv. 168-283
vv.153-167
O believers: faith of 'the
mosque
B¹ Legislation
house'
A¹ Epilogue
vv.284-286
A more recently published proposal by Farrin (2010) finds the same centring. He
and I make different decisions about middle-level section divisions in the sura,
whilst concurring that formulaic addresses serve as section markers.
I base
divisions between major sections on recurrent echoes of the primal couple's
encounter with the tempter.
It is a tricky call as this makes the vision of the
eschaton, including of the paradisical rewards of azwājun muṭahharatun, the end
of the prologue. What the division draws attention to is the foundational place of
the narratival account of the primal couple within the stories recounted.
Meanwhile, the juxtaposition of the account in which Adam's wife is identified as
his zawja to the vision of the eschaton creates a sense of conjugal bliss as the
initial as well as final gift.
Verse 35, in which the wife of Adam is introduced, is central to the sub -unit which
recounts the couple's encounter with Satan:
v30
khalif on earth
vv31-33
Adam taught names
God who teaches
+ overcomes human limitations
v34
Iblis refused to bow
v35
v36
vv37-38
v39
Adam and zawja, in the Garden,
eating (taking), 'wrongdoers'
Satan made them slip
Adam given words
God who guides
+ overcomes human failings
inhabitants of Fire
The interest in the central verses are taken up in various ways over the rest of the
sura.
Account of the prophet Adam is followed by accounts of Moses and
Abraham. Judgement on 'wrongdoers' is recounted. Legislation is given around
the themes of eating, fasting and wealth, but also in regard to women: whether
they should be 'approached' in Ramadan, provision in relation to divorce an d
widowhood, and about women as witnesses.
If these interpretations are correct then the two main quranic references to the wife
of Adam draw on the story in different ways.
Like the New Testament
appropriations (2 Corinthians 11:3 and 1 Timothy 2:13-15) they carry a sense of
warning, each in very different ways. The Qur'an gives no sense of the woman as
an independent active agent, though the later echoing section in Surat al-Aʿrāf
allusively evokes some sense of the compromises and challenges that arise
through family life.
In summary: The book of Genesis demonstrates God working for good amidst the
exigencies of human interactions: it shows humans influencing one another for
good and ill. Women are full participants: Eve serves to establish this and to show
that women are not inherently the source of life or wisdom.
I have not here
reviewed 2 Corinthians 11, which provides a lesson for all from Eve's succumbing
to deception that led to covetousness driven action, nor 1 Timothy 2, which
underlines the necessity for women to learn as it draws parallel with Eve who was
not the source of life or wisdom, though I find these to also be centred texts whose
interpretation is enhanced by recognition of repetition and parallels. In the Qur'an
Adam's wife is, effectively, the silent partner. Surat al-Aʿrāf shows cycles of human
disobedience, beginning with the couple in the Garden, and ultimately echoed in a
couple somehow committing shirk. At every stage there is a repeated call to
obedience and warning of punishment. Surat al-Baqara sets up the relationship
between story and legislation: the community is given direction about the
management of the provisions Allāh has given in a world where things are not the
ideal of Paradise. Each passage recalls Eve for a different purpose.
3. Surat al-Taḥrīm (Q66) – form, leading interests and some conversation
starters
The distribution of formulaic addresses, and of certain key words and themes gives
strong indication that Surat al-Taḥrīm is an integrated whole conforming to principles
of semitic rhetoric.
This twelve verse sura has the largest concentration of different women characters
of any sura. The opening portion makes reference to two of the Prophet's wives
who need to repent, whilst the closing portion gives examples of two pairs of
women. Of these, the first pair are identified as unbelievers despite being the
wives of 'prophets' whilst the second pair do not have such
through marriage but are positive examples.
privileged status
O Prophet – 2 women warned
A
vv 1-5
O Believers – 'Hereafter': avoid the Fire
B
v6
O Unbelievers – Fair recompense Today
C
v7
O Believers – 'Hereafter': attain the Garden
B'
v8
O Prophet – 2 x 2 women: bad and good examples
A'
vv 9-12
The central verse, though short, holds the whole sura together.
That it is
concerned with final judgement confirms observation by Michel Cuypers, who has
conducted seminal close study on many suras, that 'the mention of eschatological
punishment in the Qur'an is often found in the centre of concentric arrangement',
providing the ultimate theological principle, often in terms of judgement (Cuypers,
2009: 195, 205, 464, 469).
Not only is the sura a ring structure at the macro-level. The material on each side
of the centre, that is middle-level units (vv.1-6, 8-12), are also centred. At heart
they emphasise that Allāh reveals. The first unit focuses on the household of the
Prophet. It begins and ends with focus on the renewal of the Prophet's familial
relationships, with detail on each side of the centre taken up with the behaviour the
two wives. The beginning and the ending of the second unit are bound up with
prayer based relationship with Rabb.
Detail around the centre is to do with
eschatological judgement and reward, illustrated through the experiences of
women from earlier epochs of monotheism. It typifies the way the final ring takes
up key interests from across the whole piece.
The text is also structured at the micro-level. I take up the final verse to illustrate.
This also enables observation of the common principle in a ring structure that the
final element functions as a latch which completes the circle by evoking the
beginning.
And Mary the daughter of ‘Imrān.
A
B
She guarded her chastity,
C
so We breathed into her from Our spirit.
B¹
She accepted the truth of her Lord's words and
Scriptures:
A¹
She was one of the devout.
There are lots of interesting details in this verse on which I am not going to
comment. I am not even going to dwell on the fact that here Mary is not overtly
identified in relation to her son. The description ' daughter of ‘Imrān' harks back to
the account of her birth in Surat Āl 'Imrān (Q3), and, as Neuwirth and Marx
helpfully show, probably echoes associations of Mary with Aaron in Syriac
Christian iconography and hymns (see articles in Qur'an in Context (2010), for
Neuwirth:499-531, and for Marx: 533-563).
The description and associations
which we have already observed also associate her with leading figures of
previous epochs of monotheism. Here the parallels in the outer envelope (A, A¹)
of Surat al-Taḥrīm likewise describe Mary in terms of associations.
The internal
parallels (B, B¹) take up the nature of her piety, shown in her sexual control and
her responsiveness to kalimāt rabbihā wa-kuttubihi, that is, probably, to
fresh
revelation and previous scriptures. At the centre is the interventionist initiative of
God.
Concise reference to prayer that expresses desire to dwell in the Garden of
Paradise, uttered by Pharaoh's wife, in the previous verse, provides a completion
of the immediate business of the section and the sura (cf., Douglas, 2007:126).
This final verse continues the flow of both whilst functioning as a latch that
completes the circle of the ring structure and extends the reflection into a wider
context. The implied associations with key figures of faith from earlier epochs, the
specific forms of piety and the interventionist initiative of God are all suggestive of
ways of thinking about the Prophet being addressed at the opening of the sura.
For those familiar with the asbāb al-nuzūl (occasions for revelation) possibilities
posited for this sura: the associations persuade me that it was not honey that the
Prophet had denied himself!
Indeed, unlike certain contemporary Christian
traditions, rather than being used as an icon of the ascetic and celibate life,
evocations of Mary here serve to endorse the continuance of marital relations.
Amongst the many conversations that could emerge out of these observations are
the roles women serve at the beginning and end of portions of scripture. We have
already given some thought to the roles that Hannah and Eve serve. The women
of Pharaoh's household also feature in the significant opening of the book of
Exodus, where the brave resolve and compassion of women is shown to cut across
national and ethnic boundaries, laying the foundation for what follows. Meanwhile, it
is interesting that in the New Testament, though accounts that include Mary have
rhetorical form, other women seem to be situated in the places of major
significance. I think this to be the case with the various accounts of the women
witnesses to the resurrection at the ends of each of the Gospel accounts: like
Hannah they are not merely included in order to recount a chronological history but
to establish the leading interests of the text. As such they really ought to have a
place in the shared conversations of Jews, Muslims and Christians.
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