The Relationship between the Muslims and Jews
To discuss the relationship between the Muslims and Jews, it is necessary to divide Islamic history into three distinct eras and review each separately. The three divisions are:
1. Islam during the time of the Prophet.
2. Islam during the time of the first three caliphs.
3. Islam during the present era.
The Muslims and Jews during the Days of the Prophet Muhammad There were many battles between the Messenger of God and the Jews of Al-Hijaz. Many Jewish communities signed pacts with the Prophet. However, they breached the agreements. This made military confrontations with the Islamic force inevitable. The covenant breachers used to flee to Khaybar after their defeat. Thus, Khaybar fortresses were to the Hijazi Jews places of aggregation and fortification. The Prophet decided to remove the danger of the fortresses, and the battle of Khaybar took place. The battle was the main and final confrontation between the Prophet and the Jews.
Who Defeated The Jews In Khaybar?
Muslim historians recorded that after the besiegement of Khaybar had continued for a long time and the army's supplies ran out, the prophet gave the banner to Abu Bakr. Abu Bakr was unable to conquer any of the fortresses of Khaybar. On the following day, the Prophet gave the banner to 'Umar Ibn Al-Khattab. There was an unsuccessful battle with the Khaybarites which ended with the defeat of 'Umar and the army. They returned to the Messenger bickering and accusing each other of being cowards.
(AI-Tabari, part 3, page 12)
The Conquering Commander Who Was Loved By Allah and His Messenger
The Messenger of God was saddened by the defeat of his banner and army on two consecutive days under the leadership of two prominent companions (Abu Bakr and 'Umar). Thus, the Messenger declared the following:
"By God, tomorrow I shall give the banner to a man who loves God and His Messenger, and who is loved by God and His Messenger. He shall take Khaybar by force."
Many Qurayshite companions wished to be the one so highly praised by the Prophet. Imam Ali, at that time, had sore eyes and, therefore, was not expected to be the chosen man. The following day, though, he was brought before the Prophet. The Prophet medicated and cured the Imam's eyes with his blessed saliva. The Imam never complained about his eyes again.
Military tradition demands that the army confronts the enemy ahead of the commander. Imam Ali did the opposite. He ran ahead of the army towards the Jewish fortress. A group of Jews, led by their hero Marhab, came out of the fortress to face the Imam.
Imam Ali swiftly annihilated Marhab. Marhab's men ran back to the fortress and closed the heavy door. The Imam, with his bare hands, unhinged the gate and went after them. While fighting, a man hit the shield of the Imam and made him lose it. So, the Imam held the door with his hand and used it as a shield until he finished the battle and defeated the Khaybarites. When the Imam left the door, the companions discovered a miracle: Abu Rafi'a, a companion of the Prophet, said the following: "I, along with seven other men, tried to turn the door but we failed." (Ibn Hisham, AI-Sirah Al-Nabawiyyah, part 2, pages 234-35; also Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab, Al-Tawhid, pages 11-12)
This unique event in history shows us that Imam Ali was a formidable opponent of the Jews and that he was the one who defeated them. Thus, the Almighty opened the fortress of Khaybar at the hand of Ali before the entire Islamic army had arrived. This also shows us that an Islamic army composed of 14 hundred warriors, led by two prominent companions, could not enter the fortress of the Khaybarites, but the great Imam was able to defeat the Jewish forces all by himself.
The Muslims and the Jews during the Period of the Three Caliphs
The attitude that Imam Ali and those who followed him took towards new converts from people of the scripture was an alert attitude which tried to keep the purity of Islamic teachings. They did not listen to allegations from those who adopted Islam and claimed to have knowledge in religion through the Old Testament and wanted to pass it on to Islam. This sober attitude was taken by Imam Ali and his followers while prominent companions, including the Caliphs, were deceived by scriptural scholars. The following is an example of such allegations:
Ka'b Al-Ahbar A man from Yemen named Ka'b Ibn Mati' Al-Himyari, also nicknamed Abu Ishaq, from the clan of Dhu Ru'ayn (or the clan of Dhu Al-Kila'a) came to Medina during the time of 'Umar. He was a prominent Rabbi and became known as Ka'b Al-Ahbar. He declared his Islam and resided in Medina during 'Umar's reign.
He stayed in Medina until the days of 'Uthman. This new Muslim was not an imaginary person as the Jew Abdullah Ibn Saba, who is portrayed by legend as being a mysterious person and difficult to prove that he ever existed. Indeed, Ka'b Al-Ahbar was a real person; many companions knew him because he resided in Medina and was looked upon with high prestige by the second and the third Caliphs.
He narrated many stories, claiming that they were from the contents of the Old Testament. Many famous companions, such as Abu Hurayrah, Abdullah Ibn 'Umar, Abdullah Ibn Amr Ibn Al-As, and Mu'awiyah Ibn Abi Sufyan reported his stories. Ka'b was with 'Umar Ibn Al-Khattab when 'Umar entered Jerusalem. This rabbi reported many strange tales, the contents of which testify for their own lack of authenticity. One such tale is the following: A companion named Qays Ibn Kharshah Al-Qaysi reported that Ka'b Al-Ahbar said:
"Every event that has taken place or will take place, on any foot of the earth, is written in the Tawrat (Old Testament), which Allah revealed to His Prophet Moses. (Ibn Abd al-Barr, Al-Isti'ab, part 3, page 1287)
Such a report should arouse the attention of the reader, because it states that which is inconceivable. The earth contains billions of square miles, and each mile contains millions of cubic feet, and each part of the earth may become a place of thousands of events from the time of Moses until the Day of Judgement. Yet, Ka'b al-Ahbar claimed that all these events are recorded in the Old Testament. The parts of the Old Testament which were dictated or written by Moses do not come to 400 pages.
Recording all the events of the world, between the time of Moses and the Day of Judgement, may take millions of pages. If we take all that was written in the Old Testament, including the books which are attributed to the Prophets after Moses and before Jesus, it does not amount to more than 900 pages. How could this small number of pages contain the record of billions of events?
In fact, if only the events of death and birth alone were recorded from the time of Moses until the Day of Judgement, they would reach astronomical figures. Furthermore, the pages of the Old Testament do not record future events. All they contain are some past events which took place during or before the time of the biblical Prophets. Considering all these aspects, the claim of Ka'b Al-Ahbar that the Old Testament contains records of what had happened and what will happen until the Day of Judgement belies itself.
Ka'b Al-Ahbar Counts the Days of the Caliph 'Umar
This international Rabbi was able to deceive many companions through his trickery. Even a prominent companions such as 'Umar Ibn Al-Khattab could not escape his tricks. Ka'b's influence had grown during the days of 'Umar's caliphate to such a degree that he was able to say to 'Umar:
"Amir Al-Mu'minin, you ought to write your will because you will die in three days."
'Umar: "How do you know that?"
Ka'b: "I found it in the Book of God, the Tawrat (Old Testament).
'Umar: "By God, do you find 'Umar Ibn Al-Khattab in the Old Testament?" Ka'b: "By God, no. But I found your description in the Old Testament and your time is coming to an end."
'Umar: "But I do not feel any pain or sickness."
On the following day Ka'b came to 'Umar and said:
"Amir Al-Mu'minin, one day has passed and you have only two more days." The following day Ka'b came to him and said:
"Amir Al-Mu'minin, two days have gone and you have only one day and one night remaining."
The following morning, 'Umar came out to lead the prayer at the mosque. He used to commission men in order to arrange the rows of worshippers. When they were in a straight line, he started the prayer. Abu Lulu entered the mosque carrying a dagger with two heads and a handle in the middle. He hit 'Umar six times, one of them hit the Caliph in the navel, killing him. (AI-Tabari, part 4, page 191)
Looking at the Old Testament, one does not find any prediction that names or describes 'Umar. Also, no Rabbi, other than Ka'b, ever claimed that the Old Testament predicted the existence of 'Umar, his murder, or defined the time of his death. Had information of this kind been contained in the Tawrat, the Jews would have been very proud of it and would have used it in an attempt to prove that the Jewish religion is the right religion.
