Hazrat Ibrahim and Tough Divine Tests
Hazrat Ibrahim (Abraham) was a descendant of Hazrat Nuh (Noah). According to narratives, he was born some 3,000 years after the creation of Hazrat Adam or some 1263 years after the birth of Hazrat Nuh.
Some historians believe Hazrat Ibrahim was born in a village named “Barzeh” near today’s Damascus and some others say he was born in Babylon which is today’s Iraq.
This divine prophet was born at the time of Nimrod’s reign. The king had ordered the killing of all newborn babies after astrologers predicted that a boy will be born and will fight idolatry. This is why Hazrat Ibrahim’s mother gave birth to him secretly and in a desert.
There are different views about Hazrat Ibrahim’s father. Some historians have named “Tarokh” or “Tarah” as his father while the Old Testament names him as “Tarah”. Verse 74 of Surah Al-An’am reads “(And remember) when Abraham said to his father Azar,” and this has led some interpreters to conclude that Azar was the father of Hazrat Ibrahim. Although some other experts say Azar was not the father but the caretaker of Hazrat Ibrahim.
There are 69 references to Hazrat Ibrahim in the Holy Quran and a Surah has been named after him. The Book talks about his prophethood and his call to monotheism. Hazrat Ibrahim has a special position as God Almighty gave him the position of Imam after he successfully went through several tests. No other prophet before him had achieved this position.
The Quran also names Hazrat Ibrahim as a role model in defending monotheism and confronting idolatry. The cooling of fire and bringing life to four dead birds are among the miracles of this divine prophet.
He, along with his son Ismail, was tasked to reconstruct the Kaaba. According to narratives, the holy site was first constructed by Hazrat Adam and Hazrat Ibrahim reconstructed it.
One of the divine tests of Hazrat Ibrahim was the one in which he was asked to sacrifice his son, Ismail. This mission was given to him during one of his dreams and he accepted it. Although the prophet had brought his son to the place of sacrifice, God accepted his offer before the act of sacrifice was made and provided him with a ram for the sacrifice instead.
According to the Quran and other religious texts, Hazrat Ibrahim is the ancestor of some prophets that came after him. His son Ishaq is the ancestor of Israelite prophets such as Yaqub, Yusuf, Dawud, Sulaiman, Ayyub, Musa, and Harun.
Furthermore, Hazrat Maryam was a descendant of Ishaq and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was a descendant of Ismail; this is why Hazrat Ibrahim is sometimes named “Ab ul Anbiya” or father of prophets.
Hazrat Ibrahim lived between 175 to 200 years and was buried on his farm named Hebron which is now located in the occupied Palestinian territories.
