LITERATURE OF THE EAST
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Christians, and Sabians,[1] whoever believeth in God, and the last day, and doth that which is right, they shall have their reward with their Lord; there shall come no fear on them, neither shall they be grieved. Call to mind also when we accepted your covenant, and lifted up the mountain of Sinai over you, saying, Receive the law which we have given you, with a resolution to keep it, and remember that which is contained therein, that ye may beware. After this ye again turned back, so that if it had not been for God's indulgence and mercy toward you, ye had certainly been destroyed.
Moreover ye know what befell those of your nation who transgressed on the Sabbath day,[2] We said unto them, Be ye
- ↑ From these words, which are repeated in the fifth chapter, several writers have wrongly concluded that the Mohammedans hold it to be the doctrine of their prophet that every man may be saved in his own religion, provided he be sincere and lead a good life. It is true, some of their doctors do agree this to be the purport of the words; but then they say the latitude hereby granted was soon revoked, for that this passage is abrogated by several others in the Koran, which expressly declare that none can be saved who is not of the Mohammedan faith, and particularly by those words of the third chapter, "Whoever followeth any other religion than Islam (i.e., the Mohammedan) it shall not be accepted of him, and at the last day he shall be of those who perish." However, others are of opinion that this passage is not abrogated, but interpret it differently, taking the meaning of it to be that no man, whether he be a Jew, a Christian, or a Sabian, shall be excluded from salvation, provided he quit his erroneous religion and become a Moslem, which they say is intended by the following words, "Whoever believeth in God and the last day, and doth that which is right."
- ↑ The story to which this passage refers is as follows. In the days of David some Israelites dwelt at Ailah, or Elath, on the Red Sea, where on the night of the Sabbath the fish used to come in great numbers to the shore, and stay there all the Sabbath, to tempt them; but the night following they returned into the sea again. At length some of the inhabitants, neglecting God's command, caught fish on the Sabbath, and dressed and ate them; and afterward cut canals from the sea, for the fish to enter, with sluices, which they shut on the Sabbath, to prevent their return to the sea. The other part of the inhabitants, who strictly observed the Sabbath, used both persuasion and force to stop this impiety, but to no purpose, the offenders growing only more and more obstinate; whereupon David cursed the Sabbath-breakers, and God transformed them into apes. It is said that one going to see a friend of his that was among them, found him in the shape of an ape, moving his eyes about wildly; and asking him whether he was not such a one, the
