WHO ARE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL OR BANI ISRAEL??
Let us first understand the word ISRAEEL. The word "ESRA" means a servant and "IL" means Allah. Therefore, the name "ISRAEL" was used for Prophet Ya'qoob (Jacob) to mean a servant of God. He was the son of Ishaq {Isaac} (peace be upon him), who was son of Ibraheem {Abraham} (Peace be upon him). Hence, his full name was Yaqub ibn Ishaq ibn Ibrahim. As he was a servant of god, he was also known as Israel. Hence, his sons were referred to as "CHILDREN OF ISRAAEEL" or "BANI ISRAAEEL".
The life of Jacob (peace be upon him):
Prophet Jacob was born in 1836 B.C in present day Palestine, Jerusalem as a twin brother to Esau and died in 1689 B.C at the age of 147 years.
Almost 61 years before his birth, Allah had given the good news of the birth of Jacob to his grand father: Abraham (peace be upon them).
"And his wife was standing (there) and she laughed: But we gave her glad tidings of Isaac and after him, of Jacob (yaqoob). Quran 11:71"
Jacob (peace be upon him) grew up and lived in the land of Palestine. He was granted the honor of prophet hood in Palestine. Allah blessed Jacob with 12 kids and 4 wives.
Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun – their mother was Leah
Joseph (Yoosuf – peace be upon him) and Benjamin (Binyameen) – their mother was Rachel (Raaheel)
Dan and Naphtali – their mother was Bilhah, the handmaid of Rachel
Gad and Asher – their mother was Zilpah, the handmaid of Leah.
These 12 sons were the origin of Israelite tribes.
Bani Israel were firstly guided from their own father Jacob (peace be upon him) and then by their brother Joseph (Peace be upon him) .
The early life story of Jacob is notmentioned in Quran or in hadith. Though there are several stories of his lifethat are mentioned in Torah (tawrat) and Psalms (Zabur) but there is no authentication of thosestories from Quran and hadith, so I don't prefer to share them here.
The story of Jacob, as mentioned in Quran is given inSurah Yusuf, is a moving story, imparting a strong lesson in patience,loyalty, nobility, and compassion. It also serves as an example of Allah'spower and supremacy and the execution of His rulings. ThisSurah was revealed during the last stage of the Prophet's residence at Makkah.It was a time when the Qureysh were considering the question of killing,exiling, or imprisoning him. The Jews instigated the unbelievers to test theProphet Muhammad (peace be upon him) by asking him: "Why did the Israelites go toEgypt?" The history of the Israelites was not known to the Arabs, and the Prophet had no means of knowing their traditions. Therefore, they thought that the Prophet would not be able to give a satisfactory answer, and thus, would be totally exposed. But, contrary to their expectations, the tables were turned on them, when Allah revealed the whole story of the Prophet Joseph (peace be upon him) then and there. To their astonishment, the Prophet recited it to them on the spot. This put the Qureysh in a very awkward position because, it not only ruined their scheme, but also warned them by applying the example of Joseph's brothers to their case, as to say, "As you are behaving towards this Prophet, exactly in the same way the brothers of the Prophet Joseph behaved towards him; therefore, you should expect to meet with the same end." Therefore it was revealed in the Book of Allah (Qur'an), complete in its minute and careful details.
Allah says:
And Allah has full power and control over His Affairs, but most of men know not. ( 12:21)
Allah the Almighty declared: We relate unto you (Muhammad) the best of stories through Our Revelations unto you, of this Qur'an. And before this (i.e. before the coming of Divine Inspiration to you), you were among those who knew nothing about it (the Qur'an).
Almighty Allah also decreed: Thus We relate to you (0 Muhammad) some information of what happened before. And indeed We have given you from Us a Reminder (this Qur'an). Whoever turns away from it (this Qur'an - i.e. does not believe in it, nor acts on its orders), verily, they will bear a heavy burden (of sins) on the Day of Resurrection. They will abide in that (state in the Fire of Hell), and evil indeed will it be that load for them on the Day of Resurrection. Surah 20:99-101
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Mischief Makers
SpiritualThis book will be giving us the complete description about Bani Israel mentioned in Quran and hadith, and in process we will understand the wisdom of Allah subhanawatala for sharing these stories with us. We will understand the lessons that we can l...
