{"id":80256,"date":"2019-11-17T18:52:19","date_gmt":"2019-11-18T01:52:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?p=80256"},"modified":"2019-11-18T00:05:21","modified_gmt":"2019-11-18T07:05:21","slug":"a-bit-of-biblical-history-that-you-may-never-have-encountered-before","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2019\/11\/a-bit-of-biblical-history-that-you-may-never-have-encountered-before.html","title":{"rendered":"A bit of “biblical” history that you may never have encountered before"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Reve's<\/a>
A artist\u2019s conception of Solomon\u2019s temple \u00a0(John Reve, via Wikimedia Commons [public domain])<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I continue here with\u00a0a folkloric account, recorded in the eighth century AD, of the building of Solomon\u2019s Temple in Jerusalem. \u00a0(For the earlier portion, see \u201cHow Solomon Built His Temple.\u201d<\/a>)\u00a0 The tale comes from Ma\u2018mar ibn Rashid,\u00a0The Expeditions: An Early Biography of Muhammad<\/em>, translated by Sean W. Anthony (New York and London: New York University Press, 2015), 106-108. \u00a0Centuries after its destruction, that famous building seemed literally\u00a0magical to many.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

When this part of the story opens, the temple has already been completed \u2014 with the indispensable aid of a powerful demon or jinni<\/em> whom Solomon controlled by means of a magic ring \u2014 and Solomon has gone to relax at \u201cthe bathhouse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

When he entered the bathhouse, that demon entered with him. \u00a0When the demon entered the bathhouse, he stole Solomon\u2019s ring and threw it into the sea. \u00a0Then the demon cast a human cast a human form on his throne \u2014 his footstool \u2014 in the shape of Solomon, and Solomon\u2019s power to rule abandoned him. \u00a0Thus the demon sat on Solomon\u2019s footstool forty nights, but Solomon\u2019s aides did not realize this and said, \u201cSolomon has succumbed to temptation and neglected his prayers!\u201d \u2014 but it was the demon who neglected the prayers and other matters pertaining to religion. \u00a0Now among the companions of Solomon was a man of perseverence and strength, much like \u2018Umar ibn al-Khattab, and he said, \u201cIndeed, I will ask Solomon about this on behalf of you all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Thus he came to him, saying, \u201cO Prophet of God, what would you say to one of us who enjoys his wife on a cold night, then sleeps until the sun rises \u2014 but he neither does his ablutions [required by Islam before prayer and especially after \u201cpollution\u201d] nor prays. \u00a0Do you find any fault with him?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d the demon answered, \u201che committed no fault.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The man returned to his companions and declared, \u201cSolomon has been led astray!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

While Solomon traversed the earth he took shelter with a woman, and she placed before him a whale \u2014 or he said: she brought him a whale \u2014 and split open its belly. \u00a0Solomon saw his signet ring in the belly of the whale. He removed it from its belly and put it on again. \u00a0From then on, all the creatures he encountered prostrated themselves in obedience to him, whether beast or fowl, or any other creature, and God restored Solomon\u2019s power to rule. \u00a0About this, God has said:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe turned to us and prayed: \u00a0\u2018Lord forgive me! \u00a0Grant me such power to rule as none after me will possess.'\u201d \u00a0[Qur\u2019an 38:35]<\/span><\/p>\n

Qatadah said: \u00a0Solomon was asking God not to dispossess him of his power to rule ever again. . . .<\/span><\/p>\n

At that time the demons and birds were made subservient to Solomon.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 \u00a0 I continue here with\u00a0a folkloric account, recorded in the eighth century AD, of the building of Solomon\u2019s Temple in Jerusalem. \u00a0(For the earlier portion, see \u201cHow Solomon Built His Temple.\u201d)\u00a0 The tale comes from Ma\u2018mar ibn Rashid,\u00a0The Expeditions: An Early Biography of Muhammad, translated by Sean W. Anthony (New York and London: New […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[195,4057,66,6627,6630,1769,6633,6621,641],"class_list":["post-80256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-arab","tag-demon","tag-islam","tag-jinn","tag-magic","tag-muslim","tag-ring","tag-solomon","tag-temple"],"yoast_head":"\nA bit of "biblical" history that you may never have encountered before<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"    I continue here with\u00a0a folkloric account, recorded in the eighth century AD, of the building of Solomon\u2019s Temple in Jerusalem. \u00a0(For the\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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