Jews in the Qurʾān: An Evaluation of the Naming and the Content

Abstract

No other people are mentioned in the Qurʾān as often as the people of Israel. They appear in sixteen sūrahs and approximately forty verses by name (banū Isrāʾīl). The Qurʾān also makes reference to the Jews either by name (al-yahūd/hūd) or within the context of the people of the book (ahl al-kitāb). This paper aims to discuss the Qurʾānic verses about the Jews and the people of Israel in terms of the naming and the content. Key questions to be addressed are: What is the purpose of the frequent mention of the people of Israel in the Qurʾān? What is the context and the content of the verses about the Jews and the people of Israel both in Meccan and Medinan sūrahs? What message or messages are intended to or can be conveyed by these verses?

Keywords

• Qurʾān
• Jews (yahūd/hūd)
• the people of Israel (banū Isrāʾīl)
• the people of the book (ahl al-kitāb)
• the Prophet Muḥammad
• Muslims
• Islām

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