Hatred of Jews in the Qur'an

In this article I plan to show how the Qur'an talks about the Jewish people and about their faith, presenting its consistently negative and offensive message against them. I will not be responding to each claim or assault from the Qur'an, but will explain why hatred of Jews, or any other people for that matter, is wrong and not justified. I plan to cover the individual claims in another blog post in the future. I am not defending the Jews because I have any particular love for the Jews but because I believe in human decency and good will and I abhor racism, the application of collective labels and painting a whole community with the same brush.

The Qur'an is the holy book of the Muslims and believed to be the literal and unaltered word of god. The same god of the Jews and Christians. The message of Islam, the religion revealed to the prophet Muhammed from 610AD onwards, is considered a conclusion of the divine religion of god and shares some things, mainly dietary laws and some prophets, in common with Judaism. If you have read a little about the life of the prophet Muhammed you will find that there were many wars and conflicts in his time and his primary enemies were the infidels or pagans of Arabia, but his secondary enemies were the Jews. This historically opens up the door to justify very negative things said about the Jews by the prophet, his companions and even the Qur'an where god himself warns and insults the Jews!

One can argue that the Jews were the enemies of Islam and fought against the prophet, broke treaties and conspired with his enemies and while that may be true to a certain extent, it does not justify broad expressions of hatred or insult to regular Jews today or in the far past who have nothing to do with what some Jews in Arabia did 1400 years ago. The Qur'an promotes discrimination of Jews and refers to them in a collective manner, treating them as a single people with the same sentiment. It does not make a proper distinction between individuals or small groups or Jews then and now but paints them altogether with the same brush. It promotes the idea that a good Jew is one who (a) follows the Torah, and then (b) believes in Muhammed as the final prophet of god and, (c) eventually accepts Islam and becomes a Muslim.

During the lifetime of Muhammed, Jews were generally not forced to convert to Islam but there were certainly factors that may have pressured them into believing. Under Muhammed's rule, the Jews who lived in his territory who didn't convert to Islam were obliged to live amongst a Jewish community and strictly abide by the laws of the Torah or else suffer the punishments accordingly, and on top of that, they would have to pay a tax (jizyah) for continuing to disbelieve in Islam. If they didn't pay the tax or refused to live by the rules of traditional Judaism, changed their religion to any other religion than Islam, they would be punished and/or seen as rebels and summarily be executed. The Qur'an is not coy about what this treatment of Jews means. It clearly says that this kind of subjugation is a humiliation for the Jews (and Christians) and a clear expression of superiority of Islam over their religion:

[9:29] (O Muslims) Fight those who do not believe in Allah, nor in the latter day, nor do they prohibit what Allah and His Apostle have prohibited, nor follow the religion of truth, out of those who have been given the Book [Jews and Christians], until they pay the tax in acknowledgement of superiority [of Muslims] and they are in a state of subjection.

There is an obvious arrogance in Islam where it teaches that it is the one true religion and that Allah is the one true god and anyone who thinks otherwise must be wrong. And if anyone fights or pro-actively rejects the teachings of Islam then they are enemies of god and of all that is good. The problem with that mentality is that not everyone will believe in Islam, and Jews especially will find it difficult to accept Islam because they are able to identify the pitfalls of the religion and contradiction between their faith and this false self-proclaimed heir to their faith. It is precisely because Jews believed in the god of the Torah and its teachings that they rejected the new and strange teachings of Muhammed and rejected him as a prophet of god and therefore felt religiously obliged to fight him. They were adamant not to fall for the rouse that they saw in the prophet of Islam and his new Arabian religion. So, honestly, we cannot blame the Jews for disbelieving in Islam and fighting Muhammed, because if they are good Jews they would be consciously compelled to do so as a devout act of their faith! So Muslims who believe in jihad and defending of Islam aught to respect the Jews for their strong belief and appreciate them for fighting for what they believed in!

The Qur'an consistently depicts Jews negatively. Not just the Jews during the lifetime of Muhammed, but all Jews from the beginning of Judaism to this day, as disobedient to god and his teachings, changing scriptures and conspiring against Islam. Here is a collection of verses that promote these views:

[2.61] ....abasement and humiliation were brought down upon them [the Jews], and they became deserving of Allah's wrath; this was so because they disbelieved in the communications of Allah and killed the prophets unjustly; this was so because they disobeyed and exceeded the limits.
[2:83] And when We made a covenant with the children of Israel [Prophet Jacob]: You shall not serve any but Allah and (you shall do) good to (your) parents, and to the near of kin and to the orphans and the needy, and you shall speak to men good words and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate. Then you turned back except a few of you and (now too) you turn aside.
[2:88] And they [the Jews] say: Our hearts are covered. Nay, Allah has cursed them on account of their unbelief; so little it is that they believe.
[2:89] And when there came to them a Book from Allah verifying that which they have, and aforetime they used to pray for victory against those who disbelieve, but when there came to them (Prophet) that which they did not recognize, they disbelieved in him; so Allah's curse is on the unbelievers.
[2:102] And they [some of the Jews] followed what the Shaitans (Devils) chanted of sorcery in the reign of Sulaiman (Solomon), and Sulaiman was not an unbeliever, but the Shaitans disbelieved, they taught men sorcery and that was sent down to the two angels at Babel, Harut and Marut, yet these two taught no man until they had said, "Surely we are only a trial, therefore do not be a disbeliever."...
[4:155] Therefore, for their breaking their covenant and their disbelief in the communications of Allah and their killing the prophets wrongfully and their saying: Our hearts are covered; nay! Allah set a seal upon them owing to their unbelief, so they shall not believe except a few.
[4:156] And for their unbelief and for their having uttered against Marium [Mary] a grievous calumny.
[4:157] And their saying: Surely we have killed the Messiah, Isa son of Marium [Jesus son of Mary], the apostle of Allah;...
[4:160] Wherefore for the iniquity of those who are Jews did We disallow to them the good things which had been made lawful for them and for their hindering many (people) from Allah's way.
[4:161] And their taking usury though indeed they were forbidden it and their devouring the property of people falsely, and We have prepared for the unbelievers from among them a painful chastisement.
[5:41] O Apostle! let not those grieve you who strive together in hastening to unbelief from among those who say with their mouths: We believe, and their hearts do not believe, and from among those who are Jews; they are listeners for the sake of a lie, listeners for another people who have not come to you; they alter the words from their places, saying: If you are given this, take it, and if you are not given this, be cautious; and as for him whose temptation Allah desires, you cannot control anything for him with Allah. Those are they for whom Allah does not desire that He should purify their hearts; they shall have disgrace in this world, and they shall have a grievous chastisement in the hereafter.
[5:64] And the Jews say: The hand of Allah is tied up! Their hands shall be shackled and they shall be cursed for what they say. Nay, both His hands are spread out, He expends as He pleases; and what has been revealed to you from your Lord will certainly make many of them increase in inordinacy and unbelief; and We have put enmity and hatred among them till the day of resurrection; whenever they kindle a fire for war Allah puts it out, and they strive to make mischief in the land; and Allah does not love the mischief-makers.
[5:82] Certainly you will find the most violent of people in enmity for those who believe (to be) the Jews and those who are polytheists, and you will certainly find the nearest in friendship to those who believe (to be) those who say: We are Christians; this is because there are priests and monks among them and because they do not behave proudly.
[9:29] Fight those who do not believe in Allah, nor in the latter day, nor do they prohibit what Allah and His Apostle have prohibited, nor follow the religion of truth, out of those who have been given the Book [Jews and Christians], until they pay the tax in acknowledgement of superiority [of Muslims] and they are in a state of subjection.
[9:30] And the Jews say: Uzair [Ezra] is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!
[9:31] They have taken their doctors of law and their monks for lords besides Allah, and (also) the Messiah son of Marium [Mary] and they were enjoined that they should serve one God only, there is no god but He; far from His glory be what they set up (with Him).
[9:32] They desire to put out the light of Allah with their mouths, and Allah will not consent save to perfect His light, though the unbelievers are averse.

After reading these verses from the Qur'an it is not surprising that some Muslims show animosity or dislike to the Jews due to what the they are taught... And it is also no surprise that Jews rejected the prophet Muhammed and his religion for what the Qur'an says about them! Honestly, if you are a Muslim, ask yourself if you were in the same shoes as a Jew and read those verses above about you, would you not outright be offended and absolutely reject it?! More-so than that, I bet you would fight against it! And if you were well versed in the Torah and Jewish religion you would see so many contradictions and outright lies being said about your religion!! Even if you do not know much about the Jewish faith, you can recognise some things in the verses above that certainly don't apply to any Jews you know about!

But for all the negativity that is present in the Qur'an and Islamic teachings, there are indeed some positive verses such as:

[2:62] Surely those who believe, and those who are Jews, and the Christians, and the Sabians, whoever believes in Allah and the Last day and does good, they shall have their reward from their Lord, and there is no fear for them, nor shall they grieve.
[2:63] And when We took a promise from you and lifted the mountain over you: Take hold of the law (Torah) we have given you with firmness and bear in mind what is in it, so that you may guard (against evil).

But those of you who are well versed in the Qur'an know that such verses carry an assumption. Such verses refer to Jews and Christians who are obedient followers of the Torah and firm believers in god and have not had a chance to study Islam yet and have not rejected it or they lived before the advent of Islam. But modern Jews are not excused or appreciated in the same way because they have recourse to study Islam and if they have rejected Islam or refuse to learn it then Allah does not extend a welcome greeting to them and in fact he threatens them with hell fire and all manner of torture and humiliation. Allah is clear: "[3.85] And whoever desires a religion other than Islam, it shall not be accepted from him". Then, if you carry on reading after those verses, you will see how quickly this positivity switches to the default negativity in the next verses depicting the Jews as disobedient and stubborn.

[2.64] Then you [Jews] turned back after that; so were it not for the grace of Allah and His mercy on you, you would certainly have been among the losers.

There are other parts of the Qur'an that show respect to Jews (and Christians) by referring to them as "People of the Book" and acknowledging their scriptures and enjoin Muslims to defend synagogues, churches and cloisters! Yes, you read that right. Muslims are required by their religion to defend the Jews and Christians and their homes and places of worship!

[22.39] Permission [for the Muslims] (to fight) is given to those upon whom war is made because they are oppressed, and most surely Allah is well able to assist them;
[22.40] Those who have been expelled from their homes without a just cause except that they say: Our Lord is Allah. And had there not been Allah's repelling some people by others, certainly there would have been pulled down cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques in which Allah's name is much remembered; and surely Allah will help him who helps His cause; most surely Allah is Strong, Mighty.

But of course, this is should be read in the context that these Jews and Christians are living under Muslim rule and are obeying the laws and paying the Jizyah taxes.

The message of the Qur'an and Islam in general is clearly negative when it comes to its portrayal of the Jews. The Qur'an doesn't just talk about the Jews at the time of the prophet Muhammed - it insults and criticizes them from the birth of Judaism and extends to future generations. This of course has a very negative impact on any social cohesion that can be achieved between a Muslim and Jewish community. A Jewish community will always be under suspicion and under threat in a Muslim community because there will always be extremists and firebrand clerics who will inspire hatred into the hearts of naive and ignorant believers. It is only a matter of time before a rumour spreads or an altercation occurs and they pin the blame squarely on the Jews, because as Allah has told them time and time again in his holy text that they are the surely the enemies of Islam and the Muslims. The Qur'an does not make any clear distinction between different types or groups of Jews. It instead lumps them all together as one despised community of stubborn, misguided, deceptive people; killers of the prophets, rejecters of his message and an age-old enemy in the midst of the 'true believers'. Such ideas are abundant in the Qur'an as it repeats stories from the lives of the prophets, the vast majority of whom were Jewish. But instead of focussing on the goodly Jews and stating how pious and obedient to god they were, it concentrates on the rejecters and casts a dark shadow on a whole race.

I hope that you agree with me that it is not right to judge a community by the actions of a few people. Of all the people who should understand this it is the Muslims, who, especially after the events of 9/11 (the twin tower attacks), have felt the direct impact of Islamaphobia, xenophobia and racism. They know how it feels to be blamed, insulted, mistreated and even assaulted because of the actions of a handful of terrible Muslims. They know very well that the actions of a minority does not represent the beliefs or views of the majority. They also know the frustration of being accused in believing in a religion of violence, deception and evil. Muslims know how ignorance and negativity and false messages are harmful to social cohesion and community spirit and they should absolutely reject negative portrayals of any people based on their race, nationality, skin-color or beliefs. I ask Muslims then: is it fair to look at the Jews in the same way? Is it right to make accusations about the Jews and to tar them all with the same brush? Is it OK to make assumptions about the beliefs and attitudes of Jews based on what you, a non-Jew, have been taught from a young age? Is it right to hate?

If you are a decent human being, then I can assume you agree that it is wrong to judge people like that. Judge not lest ye be judged, as the saying goes. If we want to live in a world of peace and fairness to all, we should not hate our fellow neighbour. Instead, we should be fair and positive about all people and show mutual respect. This is something I wish I had found in the teachings of the Qur'an and Islam... So if you believe in humanity, I urge you to reconsider how you interpret your faith and reconsider what it means to be a good person.