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[W:146]**The Qur'an in chronological order.

Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 156-160 continue to rehabilitate those who fought less than valiantly at Uhud. They are urged to neither question who died, nor to fear their own death, because of the reward that awaits them in the afterlife. God also urges Mohamed to be lenient with them lest they desert him. When it comes to keeping an army intact, rules seem to be flexible.

Verses 161-180 have an argumentative tone to them. Mohamed must have been accused of withholding war booty, as 161 states, "It is not [attributable] to any prophet that he would act unfaithfully [in regard to war booty]". He (the Qur'an) then launches into an admonition of Muslims who complained about the outcome at Uhud, and hypocrites who falsely promised to fight. Quoting these verses in detail would be even more repetitive than usual, so here is just a sample:
- 165 "When a single disaster smites you, ... you ask from where does this come to us".
- 166 "What ye suffered on the day the two armies Met, was with the leave of Allah, in order that He might test the believers".
- 167 "Hypocrites utter with their mouths a thing which is not in their hearts".
- 169 "Count not those who were slain in God's way as dead". The Qur'an would be much shorter if it did not repeat itself so.
- 176-177 are a reassurance that unbelievers can not harm God. They will burn in hell.
- 178 tries to explain further why God did not give the Muslims a victory at Uhud as He did at Badr, "And let not the disbelievers think that Our postponing of their punishment is good for them. We postpone the punishment only so that they may increase in sinfulness. And for them is a disgracing torment". Apparently it is not enough that they have spent their lives to that point in mortal sin. They must, for no obvious reason, marinate further, although I fail to see how giving the pagans time to accumulate more sin could increase their punishment by more than the eternal fire they already have waiting for them. An excuse this weak could only come from a man desperately manufacturing excuses from thin air rather than from an all-powerful god.
- 179 "God left the believers in their existing state for no other reason than to distinguish the evil-doers from the virtuous ones". This is the sixth verse that says the events at Uhud were meant as a test. I suspect that the number of times a proclamation is repeated is directly proportional to the number of times doubt was expressed about it.

In short, the Battle of Uhud did not go well for three reasons:
1. Some in the Muslim army abandoned their post due to greed.
2. God allowed a near outright defeat in order to test the faithful and to teach them a lesson.
3. God wanted to give the unbelievers more time to fall further into sinfulness.

Verses 181-184 are another attack on the Jews, who are accused of bragging of their riches while calling God poor, and of rejecting Mohamed's claim of prophethood and therefore Islam - a charge of which they were guilty. They dared to remain Jewish. Two of these verses return to accusing them of travelling through time and killing the still unnamed prophets of old.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 185-200 wrap up surah 3 with warnings of Hell, promises of Heaven, and denigration of unbelievers that have been made countless times before. This series includes verse 199, which as explained earlier, clears up the mystery created by 2:62 which states, in contradiction to the rest of the Qur'an, that Jews and Christians "shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve". This verse says, "And there are, certainly, among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), those who believe in Allah and in that which has been revealed [the Qur'an] to you [Mohamed], and in that which has been revealed to them [the bible], humbling themselves before Allah [praying only to God]. They do not sell the Verses of Allah for a little price, for them is a reward with their Lord". For a Christian or Jew to believe in all the scriptures simply means they have also accepted the Qur'an, and therefore Islam. They are still "people of the scripture" by heritage, but now Muslim by choice, and therefore in God's favor.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Surah 33 is next, but again, much happened in the meantime that should be known for context:

First, the Battle of the Trench took place in 627. The Meccans, who found themselves in a war they neither started nor wanted, decided to try to end it by attacking Mohamed's army in Medina with a combined force that included Arab bedouins and members of the previously expelled Jewish Banu Nadir tribe. Because of this alliance, it was also known as the Battle of the Confederates. It ended, largely due to a massive trench dug by the defenders, in complete victory for the Muslims, which effectively ended Mecca's will and ability to fight. The eventual conquest of all the Arabian Peninsula was now all but assured. It is important to note that the one remaining Jewish tribe, the Banu Quraiza, tried to remain neutral. They aided the Muslims only to the extent of lending them tools to dig the trench, but did not join the fight on either side.

This account is disputed by some Islamic scholars who paint the Banu Quraiza as being part of the confederacy despite there being no proof of them aiding the Meccans in any historical works. These scholars claim the Jew's failure to take up arms alongside Mohamed was an act of treason, because it meant they failed to come to the aid of their besieged city. This brings us back to the Charter of Medina, whether it even existed, and what it stipulates. What should not be in doubt is that the Meccans were attacking not Medina for the purposes of conquest and occupation, but their tormentor, who happened to live in Medina. In my opinion, this is simply proof that history is written by the victors as it set the table for the act of naked aggression and genocide that followed.

Immediately after the battle, Mohamed claimed to have received a visit from Gabriel who told him he was not finished fighting. Rather than rest his forces, he was instructed to attack the Banu Quraiza. The ensuing siege lasted more than two weeks and ended with the unconditional surrender of the Jews. Mohamed appointed a Jewish convert to Islam, Sa'd ibn Mua'dh, to decide their fate. He ruled that all males of fighting age, including youths who had reached puberty, were to be beheaded, their women and children were to be taken as slaves, and their property seized. Mohamed agreed that God would have made the same ruling, and instructed that the sentence be carried out. Between 600 and 900 men and boys were murdered and their families enslaved, and with that, the last vestige of the Jewish presence in a city once called Yathrib was eradicated. It took Mohamed only five years after the Jews had welcomed him to their city to wipe them out. The debate over whether Mohamed was justified in eliminating the Jews, or if he used rationalized, convenient excuses, is well worth having. However, that is a topic for another time, as it would have no bearing on the remaining content and context of the Qur'an.
 
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Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

This is an addition to previous comments:

Having read all 86 Meccan surahs followed by surah 2, I think I understand why it was placed at the front of the Qur'an. The compilers must have realized that the Meccan surahs were mind-numbingly repetitive while offering nothing new to capture the interest of the reader other than that Mohamed was chosen by God to be his last prophet. Those surahs are based entirely on stories from the Old Testament, and contain none of the commands that set Islam apart. The compilers probably realized that only the most ardent believer would continue reading long enough to get to the Medinan surahs. By effectively starting with surah 2 (surah 1 is only seven verses), they not only fast forwarded past the ineffectiveness and failure of Mohamed's first 12 years as "God's prophet", but went straight to the onset of hostilities that set the tone for the remainder of the Qur'an and came to define Islam.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 9-20 imply that Mohamed was still forced to deal with doubters and cowards during the Battle of the Trench:
- 9 claims God "sent against the enemy a wind and forces that you saw not". The promised "swooping angels" finally showed up, albeit invisibly.
- 10-14 accuse some of Mohamed's supposed allies of looking for reasons not to fight and of being doubtful of God's promises of victory, even to the extent that they would have renounced Islam if the fight was lost.
- 15-16 start with a past tense reminder that the doubters had promised to stay and fight, but then make a confusing switch to the present tense with a warning to not flee "from death or killing". Again this is an example in which a specific circumstance is used to issue a general directive independent of context.

Reading this sort of verse causes me to marvel at the stunning change Islamic doctrine underwent in a short time. During the Meccan period, the only required acts of fealty were to believe in God alone, and to believe He had anointed Mohamed as His final prophet. Yet here Muslims are, only five years later, being judged on their willingness to kill and be killed.

Verses 17-20 continue the recriminations as God lays into the hypocrites further:
- 17 "Who can prevent God from punishing you or granting you mercy?".
- 18 "They come not to the fight but a little".
- 19 "They [hypocrites] flay you [Mohamed and the Muslims] with sharp tongues, being niggardly to possess the good things".
- 20 "Even if they were with you, only a few of them would take part in the fight".

Verses 21-27 turn to praising those who fought as promised, starting with Mohamed:
- 21 "The Messenger of God is certainly a good example".
- 22 says that seeing the forces aligned against them "only strengthened their faith and their desire of submission to the will of God".

Verse 23, if translated word for word (as much as Arabic to English syntax will allow), would simply sound like more praise for those who fought, "Of the believers are men who are true to the covenant which they made with Allah: so of them is he who accomplished his vow, and of them is he who yet waits, and they have not changed in the least". Note the phrase, "he who has accomplished his vow". At least 29 translations shown in al-Ahzab 33:23 chose to editorialize that phrase to mean they achieved martyrdom, and that those who "yet wait" will eventually join them. Those translators, who by definition declare themselves to be Islamic scholars, clearly believe that God expects Muslims to fight for Him until they are killed.
 
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Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

In verse 25 God takes full credit for the victory at the Battle of the Trench, "God repelled the unbelievers in their rage...God rendered sufficient support to the believers in fighting".

Verse 26, in my opinion, is one of the most important in the Qur'an, "And those of the People of the Book who aided them - Allah did take them down from their strongholds and cast terror into their hearts. (So that) some ye slew, and some ye made prisoners". This refers to the aforementioned siege and massacre of the Banu Quraiza. It accuses them of aiding the Confederates although no proof or detail is offered in any other verse. Their 'crime', as illogical and absurd as it may sound, was to refuse to fight and die for Mohamed, and therefore Islam. For this they were wiped out. Verse 27 confirms that their lands and possessions were turned over to the Muslims.

Verses 28-62 deal with proper conduct for Mohamed's wives and matters within the Muslim community such the dissolution of unhappy marriages. These verses contain little that affected other than Muslims, except for these passages:
- 40 says Mohamed is the "Seal of the prophets", confirming that anyone claiming to be a prophet after him is lying. This is why most Muslims consider Ahmadiyya Muslims to be apostates for raising Mirzā Ghulām Ahmad (b. 1835) to the status of prophet.
- 50 allows extra wives for Mohamed only, and confirms that he and his fighters may have sex with captives.
- 52 confirm Muslims are allowed to have sex with their captives (consent is never mentioned).

Verse 59 is a source of much controversy, more for what it does not say. Literally translated it tells Mohamed, "O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women, that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad)". Does this dictate head to foot covering, or simply a reasonable degree of modesty? Mohsin Khan adds bracketed comments to his interpretation, which, as usual for him, tend toward the 'hard-line' side, "O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies (i.e.screen themselves completely except the eyes or one eye to see the way)". A more precise description in the Qur'an would have eliminated the never-ending argument over how much of a woman's body has to be covered.

Verses 60-62 reaffirm Mohamed's license to kill anyone who fails to obey the will of God, just as it was done in the past. They state that "If hypocrites and those in whose hearts is a disease and the agitators in the city do not desist, [continue to resist Islam] they shall be seized wherever found and slain with a (fierce) slaughter. That was the Way of Allah in the case of those who passed away of old, and you will not find any change in the Way of Allah". Mohamed's control of the city had become absolute, and he ruled accordingly.

Verses 63-73 end surah 33 with offers of more fire and brimstone to the wretched unbelievers, even to the point of having their torment in Hell doubled, and Heaven to believers. It ends with the frequently added, and highly contradictory claim that, "Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

The Treaty of Hudaybiyyah was signed in March of 628 around the time of surah 60 between Mohamed and the Quraish of Mecca. It called for a ten-year period of non-aggression, but more importantly for Muslims, allowed them to perform unrestricted pilgrimages to the Kaaba. However, less than two years later, a tribe allied with the Quraish clashed with a tribe allied with the Muslims. The Quraish had no part in the hostilities and apologized to Mohamed offering restitution for damages. Mohamed refused to accept the apology, declared the treaty broken, and eventually attacked and conquered Mecca. Whether Mohamed used the conflict between client tribes as a convenient excuse to take Mecca by force is a subject of heated debate, but again, having that debate here would change nothing in terms of summarizing the remainder of the Qur'an.

Surah 60 begins with God telling Muslims not to "take My enemies and your enemies as friends", as the first six verses reiterate God's hatred of unbelievers. They invoke the example set by Abraham when he said, "Verily, we are free from you and whatever you worship besides God, we have rejected you, and there has started between us and you, hostility and hatred for ever, until you believe in God Alone".

Then verses 7-9 take a spectacular about-face that would seem to contradict the first six, not to mention hundreds of previous verses:
- 7 "It may be that Allah will bring about friendship between you and those whom you hold to be your enemies".
- 8 "Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your) Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them".
- 9 "Allah only forbids you from those who fight you because of religion and expel you from your homes".

What happened to "do not take My enemies and your enemies as friends" and "hostility and hatred for ever, until you believe in God Alone"? I have read several tafsirs (explanations by Islamic scholars) to find a reason for this abrupt, and utterly unexpected change in tone, but found only differing stories concerning one-off occurrences, as opposed to a major philosophical change, that shed little light on the matter. I expected to find agreement that these verses were an olive branch regarding the Meccans given the recently signed peace treaty, but apparently I am alone in offering that suggestion.

Verses 9-12 deal with the treatment of women who came over to Islam from Mecca, but without their husbands. They hold little interest for non-Muslims.

Verse 13 concludes surah 60 with a return to the usual tone of hostility toward unbelievers, "O you who believe! Take not as friends the people who incurred the Wrath of Allah".
 
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Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Surah 4 is titled "The Women". The first 43 verses deal with family and community matters such as fair treatment of orphans, marriage, adultery, inheritance, envy, and dispute arbitration. As usual, Hell is threatened for those who fail to comply.

These I found the most noteworthy of the first 43 verses:
- 3 is the famous verse that allows a man to have up to four wives as long as he can provide for them equally, "If ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly with the orphans, Marry women of your choice, Two or three or four; but if ye fear that ye shall not be able to deal justly (with them), then only one, or (a captive) that your right hands possess".
- 6 ensures fair treatment of orphans, "Test well the orphans, until they reach the age of marrying; then, if you perceive in them right judgment, deliver to them their property". With this verse, Mohamed was making sure a fighter would not to have to worry about his children if he were killed.
- 11 gives twice as much inheritance to males, "to the male, a portion equal to that of two females". Compared to some cultures of that time, this may have been a step up for females, but for future generations, it precludes the possibility of equality.
- 18 reminds those who may have forgotten the messages of hundreds of previous verses that "those who die while they are disbelievers. For them We have prepared a painful torment".
- 19, along with 3 above, demonstrate the patriarchal nature of Islam as God speaks directly to men, but only about women, "O ye who believe! Ye are forbidden to inherit women against their will".
- 24 "Also (prohibited are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess".
- 25 was meant to give further rules regarding marriage, but of greater interest is that it confirms Muslims may keep other Muslims as slaves, "If any of you do not have the means to marry a chaste believing woman, marry your believing slave-girls".
- 34 is well known for its command to men to beat their disobedient women, "Men are the managers of the affairs of women for that God has preferred in bounty one of them over another ... Righteous women are therefore obedient ... And those you fear may be rebellious admonish; banish them to their couches, and beat them".
- 36 contains messages of kindness, "Serve God, and associate naught with Him. Be kind to parents, and the near kinsman, and to orphans, and to the needy, and to the neighbour who is of kin, and to the neighbour who is a stranger, and to the companion at your side, and to the traveler, and to that your right hands own".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

The following will be added to the summary before surah 4:

Exact chronological order from here to the end of the Qur'an is more difficult to nail down, but by this time, it matters less. Some of the remaining surahs are cobbled together from different Medinan periods, and I see no point in dissecting them to try to achieve perfect chronology. Add to that the fact that precise timing of the remaining verses is far from agreed upon. The salient point is that all remaining verses (except for surah 99) are clearly Medinan, and therefore contain themes that relate to the militant period of Islam. For example, verse 4:24 jumps ahead to the Battle of Autus in January of 630 to sanction the rape of female captives, but I fail to see how knowing the exact battle that this verse inspired makes any difference.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

rewrite of 4:24 -

Verse 24, discussed above, is another worth individual attention as it again demonstrates that God is willing to reveal just-in-time instructions. Of course my belief is that Mohamed is the actual author of the Qur'an, and that he continues to make up 'divine' revelations as needed. In regard to sexual relations it says, "Also (prohibited are) women already married, except those whom your right hands possess". A tafsir of ibn Kathir (part 5) explains that this verse was revealed in response to this question from Mohamed's fighters, "We captured some women from the area of Awtas who were already married, and we disliked having sexual relations with them because they already had husbands. So, we asked the Prophet about this matter, and this Ayah was revealed. Consequently, we had sexual relations with these women". Permission by God (and/or Mohamed) to rape captives, married or not, could not be more clear. A video showing a young ISIS fighter about to buy a Yazidi sex slave shows him turning to the camera and saying, "It is ordained. It is ordained". This, and similar verses already shown, is what he was referring to.

Carrying on from where I left off -

Verses 44-56 are another verbal assault on Jews and Christians:
- 44 accuses Jews of "purchasing error".
- 45 calls them "your enemies".
- 46 says they "alter words".
- 47 Threatens them with again "being cursed as were the violators of the Sabbath", who were turned into apes and swine.

Verses 48-50 confirm one the most important messages in the Qur'an - that worshiping or praying to any entity other than God (including Jesus and saints) is the only unforgivable sin, "God does not forgive that partners be set up with Him. He forgives all else (48)...see how they invent lies against Allah (50)".

The diatribe continues:
- 51 "They believe in idols and false deities".
- 52 "Those are they who Allah has cursed".
- 54 "Or do they envy mankind for what Allah hath given them [Muslims] of his bounty".
- 55 reiterates that some People of the Book have seen the light, but most have not.

I found verse 56 breath-taking for the sheer hatred and cruelty it exudes, "Those who reject our Signs, We shall soon cast into the Fire: as often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for fresh skins, that they may taste the penalty: for Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 60-71 deal with the Arab tribes (hypocrites) that pledged loyalty, but failed to follow through on their promise of military support. They are accused of turning away from Mohamed in his time of need, whereas if they required aid, they would surely come to him for help (61-62). God claims to know that this degree of self-serving duplicity is "in their hearts", but rather than write them off as He has done in previous verses, He instead tells Mohamed to preach to them further, presumably in the hope that one day they might keep their promise to "go forth (fight)" (63). Mohamed is instructed to tell them they must be willing to demonstrate complete submission to "God and his messenger" in order to be returned to the good graces of God (64-70).

However, this is nothing new. It is merely a reiteration of what they have been told from the beginning. A god who could command untold numbers of "swooping angels" would not only have no need of such unreliable troops, but would undoubtedly be "swift in punishment" as He has promised to be many times. Instead, this sounds to me like another transparent and expedient bending of previously stated rules that Mohamed needed to have happen on the spot for the purpose of maintaining as large an army as possible. He might be accused of placing more stock in visible soldiers wielding real swords than in God's army of invisible angels.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 71-74 present another contrast between true believers and hypocrites with encouragement for the former to "go forth [wage jihad]" and a scolding for the latter for their reluctance to die for God. They conclude with commands to fight that could easily be taken to apply in any context, and to any time, "Therefore let those fight in the way of Allah, who sell this world's life for the hereafter; and whoever fights in the way of Allah, whether he is slain or victorious, We shall grant him a mighty reward (74)".

Verse 75 is clearly meant to rally the troops for a conquest of Mecca, "And why should you not fight in the cause of Allah and of those who, being weak, are ill-treated - whose cry is: 'Our Lord! Rescue us from this town [Mecca], whose people are oppressors?'". Mecca fell to Mohamed's army in January, 630.

Verse 76 is another tied to a specific event, but stated in a universal manner, "The believers fight for the cause of God. The unbelievers fight for the cause of the Satan. So fight against the friends of Satan". As with hundreds of other such verses presented in this way (such as verse 74 above), it makes one wonder why it appears in the Qur'an at all if not to serve as instruction for all time. The Qur'an settles the issue in verse 39:27 (and several others) by defining its nature as general and on-going, "And certainly We have set forth to men in this Qur'an similitudes of every sort that they may mind".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 77-84 further denounce the hypocrites for their failure to fight and their lack of obedience to God, the Qur'an, and Mohamed, "They proclaim obedience to you [Mohamed] but as soon as they leave at night, a group of them make secret plans to do the contrary of what you have told them to do (81)". They end with God telling Mohamed to, "Then fight in Allah's cause ... and rouse the believers".

Verses 88-89 indicate there must have been dissension in the ranks over whether to trust the hypocrites. Perhaps people were confused by the contradictory commands revealed earlier, some of which said deserters were to be punished, while others gave them a second chance. Apparently God picked a position and settled the dispute by issuing the following thumbs-down verdict, "Why are you divided into two different parties concerning the hypocrites, when God Himself has turned them to disbelief because of their misdeeds ... They wish you to become unbelievers as they themselves are. Do not establish friendship with them until they have abandoned their homes for the cause of God [come out to fight for Islam]. If they betray you, seize them and slay them wherever you find them". The time to accept empty promises had passed.

Verses 89-90 introduce, just when it conveniently might reduce the number of fighters opposing Mohamed in his conquest of Mecca, the concept of military neutrality, "those who attach themselves to your allies or come to you with no desire to fight you or their own people. God could have given them power to fight you. Thus, if they retreat, stop fighting and come forward and offer you peace, God will not allow you to fight them". All they have to do is stand aside while Mohamed seizes their city.

Verse 91 gives Mohamed the power of life and death over hypocrites and/or traitors, "You will soon find others who seek security from you as well as from their own people, but when they are invited to return to idol worship, they do so enthusiastically. Thus, if they do not keep away from you nor come forward with a peace proposal nor desist from harming you, apprehend and slay them wherever you find them, for We have given you [Mohamed] full control over them". Even if this verse does not mark the actual conquest of Mecca, it spells out the absolute authority that Mohamed will have over the city.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

The Qur'an frequently states that it is the last book from God starting with the Old Testament, and therefore that Muslims should believe commands from the O.T. such as, "Thou shalt not kill". However, the Qur'an also says (Shakir translation), "Whatever communications We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, We bring one better than it or like it.(2.106)". This means that a passage in the Qur'an replaces any from the bible should they conflict. Apparently God felt an amendment to the sixth commandment was in order, so he created verse 92, "A believer cannot slay another believer ... ". Nothing is said about not slaying unbelievers, which clearly changes the universal prohibition on killing to one that applies only to Muslims. This is in keeping with Islam's practice of differentiating Muslims from unbelievers in every way imaginable.

In the unlikely event that one cannot guess the fate of those who kill Muslims, verse 93 imposes a sentence upon them that should surprise nobody, "whoever kills a believer intentionally, his punishment is hell ... Allah will send His wrath on him and curse him and prepare for him a painful chastisement". Not all lives are considered equal in Islam.

Verse 95 contains a message so central to the evolution of Islam as a warrior religion that it is stated three times, "Among the believers, those who stay at home without a good reason are not equal to those who strive for the cause of God in person or with their property [1]. To those who strive for His cause in person or with their property, God has granted a higher rank than to those who stay at home [2]. God has promised that everyone will receive his proper share of the reward but He will grant a much greater reward to those striving for His cause than to those who stay home [3]". Message received loud and clear - to gain God's highest degree of favor one must engage in warfare. This undoubtedly serves to inspire today's zealots to commit jihad, or as the rest of the world calls it - terrorism.

Verse 100, "He who emigrates in the Cause of Allah, ... whosoever leaves his home as an emigrant unto Allah and His Messenger, and death overtakes him ...", demonstrates the importance of learning certain phrases used frequently in the Qur'an. It twice refers to "emigrating in the cause of God", but only those familiar with specific expressions will know that 'to fight' is understood to be the reason for leaving home. We know this because none of the Meccan surahs contained such commands. They started appearing in Medinan verses, and only in the context of fighting. That this verse includes with, "and death overtakes him", refers to the possibility of being killed in battle as a result of "emigrating".

Verse 101 makes another proclamation rooted in whatever was happening at the time, but continues to resonate due to the generic wording of the underlined phrase, "And when you journey in the earth, there is no blame on you if you shorten the prayer, if you fear that those who disbelieve will cause you distress, surely the unbelievers are your open enemy".

The warmongering continues with verse 104, "do not weaken in pursuit of the enemy".
 
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Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 105-115 repeat the usual disparagement of unbelievers as in 115, "And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger after the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the believers' way [Islam]. We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and burn him in Hell - what an evil destination".

Verse 116 completes the barrage with a word-for-word repetition of 48, "Allah forgives not that partners should be set up with Him; but He forgives anything else, to whom He pleases". Again it is confirmed that not following Islam is the greatest sin. I have never understood why Mohamed felt the need to create new revelations that were nothing more than copies of previous verses. He simply could have reminded his followers of the old ones, which would have considerably shortened the Qur'an.

This series ends with verse 117 describing how the pagans worship female idols and Satan, which probably means that the conquest of Mecca had not yet happened, and that Mohamed was still trying to obey verse 85 and, "rouse the believers".

Verses 118-126 warn that the devil promised, "I will lead them astray(119)", ending with yet another threat that assignment to Hell will be the fate for those who heed him.

Verses 127-130 return to defining domestic law within the Islamic community. They decree that divorce is allowed if it is mutually agreed upon, and that a man must treat his wives equally.

Verses 131-140 go through another cycle of the usual warnings of God's judgement which, as always, includes, "God will gather all the hypocrites and the disbelievers together in hell fire (140)".

Verse 141 offers another obvious contradiction, "God will never help the unbelievers over the believers". This not only conflicts with 3:140 in which God claims to "alternate victory", but with history. The many defeats over the centuries that various Muslim armies have endured prove that claim to be false. For example, the Franks stopped the Muslim advance at Tours in 732, the Viennese repulsed repeated Ottoman attacks, and the six-day war in 1967 was a clear victory for the Jews over Muslim opponents.

Verses 142-152, which do little more than add to the well-worn fire and brimstone pattern, do contain a good example of a confusing juxtaposition of claims that appears throughout the Qur'an. While 151 says, "we have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment [Hell]", 152 follows by stating, "Allah is Forgiving, Merciful". These claims are actually not as incompatible as they may appear, for it has been stated many times that God will forgive and show mercy only if one repents of his infidelity and accepts Islam without reservation at any time before death.
 
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Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 153-172 recap God's grievances with Jews and Christians:
- 155 "they [Jews] broke their covenant; that they rejected the signs of Allah".
- 156 "They rejected Faith and uttered against Mary a grave false charge".
- 159 states that on Judgement Day Jesus will testify against those who do not recognize him as being only a messenger.
- 160 "Because of the wrongdoing of the Jews We forbade them good things which were (before) made lawful unto them".
- 161 "And of their taking usury when they were forbidden it, and of their devouring people's wealth by false pretenses, We have prepared for those of them who disbelieve a painful doom".
- 162 "The learned among the Jews and the faithful believe in what God has revealed [the Qur'an] to you (Muhammad) ... They will receive a great reward from Us". Again, this promises Heaven to Jews who convert to Islam.
- 163-170 cite the biblical prophets plus Mohamed with the usual warning to believe or burn.
- 171 "Christ Jesus was only a messenger of Allah ... Say not Trinity ... Allah is above having a son".

Included in the above sequence are verses 157-158, which are much more than just another criticism of the Jews, "That they [the Jews] said (in boast), 'We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah'. But they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, ... but Allah took him up unto Himself". They finalize Islam's divorce from the New Testament and therefore the most basic tenets of Christianity. Although the Qur'an frequently tells believers to accept all previous scriptures, it has always denied the primary claim of the New Testament; that Jesus is the son of God. Now we have denial of a second foundational belief; that He died on the cross as a surrogate for sinners. That leaves only the virgin birth as a point of agreement, but even that is rendered moot by Islam's refusal to accept Jesus as the son of God. To Islam, His birth only signaled the arrival of another prophet, not the savior of mankind.
 
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Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Before summarizing the final surahs, it would be helpful to be aware of the various events that provided the backdrop to them. The last five years of Mohamed's life saw a flurry of military activity that resulted in Islam gaining control of the Arabian Peninsula as well as making its first forays into neighboring lands. Where possible, I will tie verses to the events they inspired.

After completion of the ethnic cleansing of Medina, Mohamed turned his attention to the remaining Jewish tribes that had inhabited the peninsula for about a thousand years. He attacked their oasis settlements and relegated them to second-class status known as dhimmitude. They were allowed to work, but not longer own, their land in exchange for giving the Muslims half their output. This arrangement lasted about 15 years before they were expelled altogether. The Jews of Khaybar, Fadak, and Wadi al Qura suffered this fate. In each case, Mohamed claimed the attacks were preemptive, as he had 'received word' that they were about to attack the Muslims. There is no way of knowing if that is true or if it is just another example of the winner writing the account.

In September of 629, the Muslims engaged in their first major battle against a Christian tribe and the Byzantine Empire at Mu'tah in present-day Jordan over 800 kilometers north-west of Medina. That the Christians won this battle is not nearly as meaningful as the fact that it set the stage for wars beyond the borders of Arabia that culminated in the creation of a vast Islamic Empire and centuries of conflict between Muslims and Christians.

Mohamed's primary objective was always to conquer Mecca. In December of 629, he declared that the pagans had broken the treaty of Hudaybiyyah (discussed earlier) and marched on Mecca with an army estimated at 10,000 soldiers. After a mostly bloodless capitulation, Mecca and the Kaaba came under Muslim control. In my opinion, Mohamed's failure to win the pagans over to Islam through preaching, and therefore to gain control of the Kaaba peacefully, is the reason he turned Islam into a warrior religion. I believe he was determined to make the Kaaba a Muslim shrine one way or the other.

Battles were now being fought throughout the Arabian Peninsula. The northward incursion against the Byzantines was matched by invasions 1,000 kilometers to the south-east of Mecca into Yemen. Closer to home, tribes such as the pagans of Nejd and the Banu Thalabah were attacked and subdued. As it became clear that Mohamed's power was increasing and that he had committed Islam to ever widening campaigns of conquest, several tribes saw the writing on the wall and preemptively converted to islam out of self preservation.

Islam had been fully transformed into a religion of conquest and subjugation. A total of 20 raids, battles, and conquests followed in rapid succession for the remainder of the year as tribes not aligned with Mohamed were targeted one after the other. Spectacular amounts of war booty and numbers of captives were taken in the process. Among the victims were the Hawazin tribe and their allies who were soundly defeated at The Battle of Hunain near Mecca. The so-called Battle of Tabuk occurred just south of Byzantine territory. However, no fighting actually took place because no enemy was ever spotted. It is noteworthy for being the last campaign that Mohamed would lead, and because it further indicated his desire to make war with the Byzantine Empire. Again, he had 'received word' that the Byzantines were going to attack the Muslims, so he assembled the largest force he had ever commanded and marched them to Tabuk where he waited in vain for two weeks for an enemy that never appeared.

With the Arabian Peninsula largely under his control, Mohamed's last order, issued only one month before he died, was for his army to cross into Byzantine territory for the first time to attack the town of Balqa, Jordan. As it turned out, Mohamed's final act was to make a war with the Byzantines a reality. The historical record of this war can easily be researched by anyone who cares to do so.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Surahs 99 and 57 are next, but they are mostly reminiscent of the Meccan period in both style and content with the usual warnings to either follow Islam or spend eternity in Hell. Surah 57 was revealed after the conquest of Mecca in 630. It contains something new in the form of another status update that may have come as a surprise to new converts. It places those "who spent and fought before the victory [conquest of Mecca]" above those who "spent and fought afterwards". No mention of a ranking scheme for the faithful was ever made until Mohamed moved to Medina and the fighting began. First we learned that fighters are higher in rank than those who sit at home (4:95), and now this surah takes it a step further and raises the first fighters over those who joined the cause later. Of course both are promised the pleasures of Heaven.

Surah 47, entitled "Mohamed", is full of fire and brimstone, hatred for unbelievers, and a call for Muslims to kill them:
- 1-3 demonstrate that no matter how many times the Qur'an has stated that unbelievers are bad and believers are good, it can always be said again.
- 4 begins with a command to slaughter the unbelievers in battle, and includes the conveniently unprovable claim that God could do the killing himself, but requires those who hope to reach Heaven to prove their worth by doing it in his stead, "When you meet the unbelievers, smite their necks, then, when you have made wide slaughter among them, tie fast the bonds; then set them free, either by grace or ransom, till the war lays down its loads. So it shall be; and if God had willed, He would have avenged Himself upon them; but that He may try some of you by means of others. And those who are slain in the way of God, He will not send their works astray".
- 5-7 reaffirm the promise of Heaven for those who may still be struggling with the prospect of dying in battle.
- 8-11 claim that unbelievers "hate the Revelation of Allah [the Qur'an]", and by extension Islam and Muslims.
- 12-19 further hammers away at the believer/unbeliever schism. I have frequently heard it said that the Qur'an is poetic. I wonder if, "those who shall dwell for ever in the Fire, and be given, to drink, boiling water, so that it cuts up their bowels(15)" is meant to be read in iambic pentameter.

The rest of the surah indicates Mohamed was still dealing with people who were reluctant to fight, "When a clear surah is sent down, and therein fighting is mentioned, you see those in whose hearts is sickness looking at thee as one who swoons of death (20)". Again, Mohsin Khan enhanced his translation by adding "Jihad - holy fighting in Allah's Cause" after "fighting". The remaining verses alternate between berating and threatening "those in whose hearts is sickness" and occasional praise for those who do fight:
- 23-24, 27 "Such are they whom Allah has cursed [those who refuse to fight], so that He has made them deaf and blinded their sight. Do they not then reflect on the Qur'an? Nay, on the hearts there are locks ... How shall it be, when the angels take them, beating their faces and their backs".
- 31 "We know those of you who struggle and are steadfast". This is another example in which 'jihad' is used in the context of fighting.
- 34 "Those who disbelieve and bar from God's way and then die disbelieving, them God will not forgive".
- 35 "So do not weaken and call for peace while you are superior".
- 36 "The life of this world is but play and amusement".
- 38 ends surah 4 with a threat, "If you turn away, He will substitute another people instead of you, then they will not be your likes".

Having read this far, I find it impossible to maintain even the slightest regard for Islam because of the endless denigration of, sheer hatred towards, and commands to fight non-Muslims. I am certain this surah breaks every Western law concerning hate speech and incitement to violence against an identifiable group.

Surahs 13, 55, and 76, which follow, according to various sources, sound Meccan. Their actual chronology is irrelevant as they are simply another rehash of four main points from the Meccan era: God created everything, He has no equal or partner, believers will go the Heaven on Judgement Day, and of course, unbelievers will go to Hell. Anyone who doubts that Islam was created for men should read Surah 55. Three times it reminds them that Heaven is basically a gentlemen's club staffed by virgins as it promises, "There will be bashful maidens untouched by mankind or jinn (56)", "There will be well-disciplined, beautiful maidens (70)", and "Pure ones confined to the pavilions ... untouched by jinn or mankind (72, 74)". With such joys awaiting a young, unmarried mujaheed, it is little wonder that many of them willingly pick up arms and fearlessly charge the enemy.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Surah 65, which sets out rules for divorce, does so exclusively from male perspective while it separates wives into four categories. It first gives rules for divorcing mature women who are not pregnant, saying they are to be treated fairly and kindly. Verse 4 then divides other wives into three categories, "Those who are past menstruation, those who have not yet menstruated, and those who are pregnant". Note the middle category. It clearly refers to prepubescent girls. Mohsin Khan clarified this by adding, "they are still immature", to his translation.

Surah 98, another in this series that is Meccan in style and content, defines the difference between unbeliever and believer as bluntly and succinctly as possible:
- 6 "[disbelievers] are the worst of creatures".
- 7 "[believers] are the best of creatures".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Surah 59 refers to the expulsion of the Jewish Banu Nadir tribe (previously discussed), which occurred about four years previously, "He drove out the disbelievers from their homes ... they thought their fortresses would defend them from Allah ... but he cast terror into their hearts (2) ... That is because they opposed Allah and His messenger (4)". Verse 4 ends with another event-specific, but generically stated phrase, "and if any one resists Allah, verily Allah is severe in Punishment".

Verses 11-17 describe the disfunctional relationship that existed between hypocrites and Jews, and give evidence of their mutual unworthiness in the eyes of God:
- 11-12 claim the hypocrites falsely pledged allegiance to the Jews.
- 13-14 say the Jews are more afraid of Muslims than of God, which is why they will only fight from their fortresses.
- 15 compares the Banu Nadir to the Banu Qaynuqa and their richly deserved expulsion from Medina the year before, "Like those before them shortly; they tasted the evil result of their affair, and they shall have a painful punishment".
- 16-17 promise the usual reward for those who "resist Allah", "Their end is, both [hypocrites and Jews] are in the Fire".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

The first 26 verses of surah 24 deal with illicit sexual relations:
- 2 "Flog fornicators with a hundred lashes each".
- 4 "Those who accuse married women [not their own wives] of committing adultery - but are not able to prove their accusation by producing four witness - must be flogged eighty lashes".
- 6 "Those who accuse their wives of committing adultery but have no witness except themselves, should testify four times saying, 'God is my witness that I am telling the truth'".
- 8 "The spouse will be acquitted of the punishment if she challenges his testimony by saying four times, 'God is my witness that he is a liar'".
- 26 sums up this section by declaring, "Indecent woman are for indecent men and indecent men are for indecent woman".

Verses 27-34 deal with privacy and decorum:
- 30 tells believing men "to lower their gaze".
- 31 would have prevented a great deal of confusion if it had been more specific. It tells believing women "to lower their gaze and be modest, and to display of their adornment [beauty] only that which is apparent". The differences in dress codes between the world's Islamic communities amply demonstrates that the definition of an "adornment which is apparent" is anything but clear. It goes on to say women should "draw their veils over their bosoms", but says nothing specific about face or full body coverings. Muslims are still trying to figure this out.
- 33 contains three random instructions; stay chaste until marriage, consider freeing slaves who petition you, and do not force your slave girls into prostitution.

Verses 35-57 offer only repetition, as they return to preaching of God's power. Again, unbelievers and hypocrites are reviled, and believers lauded.

Verses 62-64 end surah 24 with Mohamed reiterating his credentials to anyone who may still doubt that he is God's prophet:
- 62 "The believers are only those who believe in Allah and His Messenger". In addition to reiterating that Mohamed is God's second-in-command, this verse explicitly states what many hundreds of other verses imply - to be considered a believer deserving of equality in the eyes of God, one must accept Mohamed as God's messenger, and by extension, the Qur'an as His last communication with mankind. Belief in the previous scriptures alone is simply not enough.
- 63 "Let those beware who dissent from the Prophet's order".
- 64 restate the consequences of one's willingness to believe and obey, "He surely knows all about you in this life. On the day when you return to Him, He will tell you all about whatever you have done [and whether you are assigned to Heaven or Hell]".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

The chronology of Surah 22 is unsure, but again it does not matter given the general nature of its content. Verses 1-25 are a repetition of warnings of Judgement Day, but these go the extra mile in their vivid, and nearly gleeful sounding, description of God's torture chamber:
- 19 "As for the unbelievers, for them garments of fire shall, be cut, and there shall be poured over their heads boiling water".
- 20 "It will melt their skins and all that is in their bellies".
- 21 "And for them are whips of iron".
- 22 "Whenever in anguish they will try to come out of hell they will be returned therein to suffer the burning torment".
- 25 "We shall let him taste a painful chastisement".
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Verses 26-48 speak of the Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca), visiting the Kaaba, sacrificing animals, and feeding the needy. The remaining verses, 49-78, contain messages we have heard many dozens of times:
- 49 "Say [Mohamed]: O mankind! I am only a plain warner unto you".
- 50 "The righteously striving believers will receive forgiveness and honorable sustenance".
- 51 "But those who strive against Our Signs, to frustrate them,- they will be Companions of the Fire".
- 58 "Those who emigrated [and fought] in the Cause of Allah and after that were killed or died, surely, Allah will provide a good provision for them".
- 64 "To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and in the earth".
- 72 continues to incite hatred of unbelievers. It states that their disdain for Islam is so great as to bring them to the brink of attack for no other reason than to hear the Qur'an being spoken, "And when Our clear communications are recited to them you will find denial on the faces of those who disbelieve; they almost spring upon those who recite to them Our communications. Say [to them, Mohamed]: Shall I inform you of what is worse than this? The fire; Allah has promised it to those who disbelieve; and how evil the resort".

Verse 78 ends surah 22 with what some people call the sixth pillar of Islam, "And strive (jahidu) in His cause as ye ought to strive for Him". Given the on-going campaigns of conquests, plus the many previous instances in which 'jihad' is used in the context of warfare, this is clearly a reminder that the fighting is not yet over.
 
Re: The Qur'an in chronological order.

Surah 63 is entitled "The Hypocrites", who are dismissed as Hell-bound liars in only 11 verses, "They are the enemy, therefore beware of them; may Allah destroy them (4)".

At some point, one might wonder why the Qur'an contains so much repetition. My theory is that Mohamed was constantly dealing with those who doubted his claim to prophethood, and who showed reluctance to kill or be killed for God based solely on his word. Warnings to obey his every command, claims that God knows everything they say and do, and threats of Hell for those who fail to comply, are obviously directed at the unconvinced. The stick is brandished far more often than the carrot is offered. The following surah is a good example of this.

Surah 58 is next. After dealing with a specific domestic squabble of little interest, it issues a series of threats that indicates to me that Mohamed was concerned about conspiracies. People must have been meeting behind his back, and conveniently for him, God tried to put a stop to it:
- 5 "Those who oppose God and His Messenger will be humiliated ... those who disbelieve will suffer a humiliating torment".
- 7 "Nowhere is there a secret counsel [God is there too]".
- 8 "[Those who] hold secret counsels among themselves for iniquity and hostility ... Enough for them is Hell: In it will they burn".
- 14 "Have you not seen those who have established friendship with the people who are subject to the wrath of God"?
- 15 "Allah has prepared for them a severe punishment; surely what they do is evil".
- 16 "They have made their oaths a screen (for their misdeeds): thus they obstruct (men) from the Path of Allah: therefore shall they have a humiliating Penalty".
- 17 "They are the inmates of the fire, therein they shall abide".
- 18 "Upon the day [Judgement Day] when God shall raise them up all together ... they are the liars".
- 19 "They are Satan's party and the party of Satan will certainly suffer a great loss".
- 22 "[believers] are the party of Allah". The underlined phrase should sound familiar to anyone who follows news from the Middle East, as "party of Allah" in Arabic is 'Hezbollah'.
 
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