The story of Adam and Eve in the Quran and the Christian Bible - Essay Example

The story of Adam and Even in the Quran and the Christian Bible Introduction The story of the fall of Adam and Eve, who isknown as Hawwa in Islam is found in both the holy books of the Christians and the Muslims.  The bible and the Quran share some similarities in this story, but also portray wide differences. The key areas, which bring out these comparisons and contrasts are the details of the creation of Adam and Eve, their sin which led to their fall and their family (R. Alter 56). Comparing the Biblical and Quranic versions on the story of Adam and Eve In reference to the bible, it is outlined that, God created Adam as the first human being from the dust on the ground by breathing into his nostrils, the breath of life. In this version, God created man in His own image and gave him the green light to name all the animals and anything else in his environment(Pagels, Elaine 24).The Quran also states that Adam was created by God as the first human being (Al-Hijr 15:26). He was made in the resemblance of God himself and prophet Isa, who is commonly known as Jesus in the bible. The process of creation is quite different in the two books. The Quran states that God created Adam from clay by simply uttering the word “be” (As-Sajdah 32:7-8). Allah, then introduced Adam to the names of all his creation, of which the man acknowledged and repeated after His words. In the Quran, it is noted that, God commanded His angels to prostrate themselves before the first man (Robinson 85). This was meant for the angels to honor God’s new creation and to display their obedience to Him. All the angels obeyed apart from Iblis, who was immediately expelled from paradise. In the Bible, such a theory is not mentioned at all. Concerning the creation of Eve, the Bible states that, God created a woman from one of Adams ribs (Genesis 2:18-21). The two were subsequently placed on the earth in a place known as the Garden of Eden. According to the Quran,Hawwa was created to be a companion for Adam. The book does not specifically portray that she was created from Adam’s rib (Al-A’raf 7:189). The Quran also differs from the Biblical version by claiming that, the garden where Adam and Hawwa were initially placed was in paradise itself (Tabatabae, Sayyid, Mohammad Hosayn 35). Once in the Garden of Eden, the Bible states that God allowed them to feed from any tree in the garden in exception of one. This was known as the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Hereby, Adam and Eve were warned that they would die immediately if they ate from that tree(C. R. Alter 68). The Quran supports this theory by stating that Adam and Hawwa were cautioned on eating fruits from a tree. The Quran does not name the forbidden tree, but Shaitaan referred to it as the tree of eternity just to deceive Hawwa and her companion. A serpent, one of the animals in the garden as stated in the bible, lured Eve to eat the fruit that came from the prohibited tree. She then tempted Adam to feed on the fruit (Genesis 3:12). Immediately after consuming the fruit, the two became aware of their sin, recognized that they were devoid of clothes and attempted to cover their bareness with leaves. Unlike in the Biblical version where the serpent is assumed to be Satan, the Quran unambiguously claims that it was Iblis himself, who lied to Adam and Hawwa about the forbidden tree(Westermann, Clause 23). With respect to the Bible, God punished Adam and Eve in a number of ways. First, He put enmity between the woman and the snake and then forced the couple to leave the Garden of Eden. The Bible also states that God put a curse on the snakes, which have to crawl and feed on dust. Women, consequently, have to endure from monthly periods and undergo pain during childbirth (Genesis 3:16).Men were cursed to sweat as they toiled hard for a living (Genesis 3:17). As a result, these two human beings populated the earth with death, serving as the conclusive punishment from God (Jacobs 5). The Quran on the contrary states that, God forgave them of their sin when they begged for His mercy (Al-A’raf 7:22-23). The Quranalso argues that the difficulties of life experienced on the earth are what makes it different from eternal life in paradise (Tabatabae, Sayyid, Mohammad Hosayn 76). According to the Bible and the Quran, Adam and Eve had two sons. The two holy books state that Cain was the eldest son followed by Abel. They made sacrifices to God but the Almighty only accepted sacrifices and offerings from Abel. This is because Abel gave his best flocks which indicated that he put God first in his heart (Al-Maida 5:30–32). Cain was focused on simply making a sacrifice rather than pleasing his God. He often made sacrifices from fruits on his ground, which were not the best of his efforts (Genesis4:1-7) In the Bible, the blame for the fall of Adam and Eve is put solely on the shoulders of the woman for falling into the serpent’s enticement and lured Adam in turn (Genesis 3:12). According to the Quran, the blame is put on both Adam and Hawwa.  The book states that they both listened to Iblis and that they fed from the tree on their own free will without any coercion.  As for the Quran, there is a hadith on whom ate the fruit first. The hadith sheds light on Hawwa’s influence on Adam as he was reluctant initially. Even so, the Quran states that the woman did not present the fruit to him, but was simply the first to show an interest (2 Surah 7:22).  As a result, Adam too fell to the Satan’s bait and thus both sinned (Surah 20:121).  This means that, they were held accountable for their sin individually (Robinson 52). The Bible states that the fall of Adam and Eve marked the instance where death and sin entered the earth. The Bible teaches all Christians on the need of the blood sacrifice of Jesus. The Quran, on the other hand, does not acknowledge the concept of original sin. Instead, it teaches Muslims that every person is held accountable for their own sins (Norris, Pamela 102). As stated in the Quran, Allah (swt) informed the angels of his imminent plan to create Adam. He had already intended to place him on earth in the first place (Surah 2:30). This means that no matter what would have happened, in terms of Adam and Hawwa sinning or not, the humans were ordained to be on earth (Tabatabae, Sayyid, Mohammad Hosayn 13). The Muslim’s holy book teaches that every individual is born with a clear conscience. In addition, every person is answerable for their sins since Adam and Hawwa were responsible for theirs. In reference to the Bible, all the descendants of Adam and Eve are forced to suffer unfairly and unjustly for the sins of their ancestors.  Conclusion In this essay, the similarities and the vast differences between the Biblical and Quranic versions Adam and Eve have been clearly laid out. From these comparisons, we can therefore conclude that both versions suffer from similar irrationalities. However, the Biblical version is straightforward. The Quran has plenty of contradicting statements on the issue. For instance, it fails to give its stance on the creation of Eve, but later supports the biblical version in a hadith reported by Abu Hurairah (SahihBukhari 4:55:548).The Quranic version also asserts that she was indeed created out of Adam (An-Nissa’ 4:1). The comparison, therefore, teaches us on the directive for equality of the gender, justice and fairness in matters concerning men and women. Unlike Christianity, the Islamic principle informs that every person has freedom of will and is held accountable for their own sin (Tabatabae, Sayyid, Mohammad Hosayn 57). Works Cited Alter, Cf. Robert. "The Art of Biblical Narrative." basic books (1983): 39.Print Alter, Robert. The five books of Moses. New York: W.W. Norton, 2004.Print J., Kolatch Afred. JudaismS Rejection Of Orginal sin. New York: Jonathan David Publishers, 1989.Print Jacobs, Mignon R. "Gender, Power, and Persuasion: The Genesis Narratives and Contemporary Perspectives." Baker Academic (2007): 37.Print Mathews, K. A. Genesis 1-11:26. B&H Publishing Group, 1996.Print Norris, Pamela. The Story of Eve. MacMillan Books, 1998.Print Pagels, Elaine. Adam, Eve and the Serpent. Vintage Books., 1989.Print Robinson, Neal. Discovering the Quran. Georgetown University Press, 2002.Print Tabatabae, Sayyid, Mohammad Hosayn. The Quran in Islam: Its Impact and Influence on the Life of Muslims. Routledge, 1988.Print Turner, Laurence A. Genesis (2nd ed.). Sheffield:: Phoenix Press, 2009.Print Westermann, Clause. Creation. Fortness press, 1974.Print Read More