WHO WAS FIRST?

JIHAD            جهاد

by Alex Hutchins

Jihad (ǧihād

[dʒi’hæ’d]) an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God (al-jihad fi sabil Allah)".  A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is mujahideen. Jihad is an important religious duty for Muslims. A minority among the Sunni scholars sometimes refer to this duty as the sixth pillar of Islam, though it occupies no such official status.  In Twelver Shi'a Islam, however, Jihad is one of the 10 Practices of the Religion.

Jihad, since 9/11 has taken on the meaning of “holy war,” specifically towards Americans and her allies, but towards any non-Muslim believer.  But, who was first with these holy wars?

Joan Wolf states in This Scarlet Cord that Joshua and his army were embarking (battle of Jericho) on what Muslims today call JIHAD, the destruction of everyone and everything that does not conform to their own religious practices and beliefs.

He is the central character in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Joshua. According to the books Exodus, Numbers and Joshua, he became the leader of the Israelite tribes after the death of Moses; his name was Hoshe'a the son of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim, but Moses called him Yehoshu'a (Joshua) (Numbers 13:16) the name by which he is commonly known; and he was born in Egypt prior to the Exodus, and was probably the same age as Caleb, with whom he is occasionally associated.

Joshua also holds a position of respect to Muslims. According to the Qur’ān, he was, along with Caleb, one of the two believing spies whom Moses had sent to spy the land of Canaan. All Muslims also see Joshua as the leader of the Israelites, following the death of Moses. Although some Muslims see Joshua as a prophet, others view him not as prophet but as a saintly man and great leader. Muslims also believe Joshua to be the "attendant" of Moses mentioned in the Qur’ān, before Moses meets Khidr.

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So, did Joshua really destroy Jericho?

"…we have some good reasons to accept the biblical account of the Israelites' conquest of the land of Canaan under Joshua as historically grounded.1  Many critics, however, argue that the idea that God authorized the Israelites to conquer the people of the land and kill not only men but, in some instances, women and children, is immoral, and therefore evidence that the Bible is not inspired…  The question remains, though: How could such a divine command be morally just?”

To read entire article, click here.

God commanded Joshua to have the priests carry the ark of the covenant into the center of the Jordan River, which was at flood stage. As soon as they stepped into the river, the water stopped flowing. It piled up in heaps upstream and downstream, so the people could cross on dry ground. God performed a miracle for Joshua, just as he had done for Moses, by parting the Red Sea.

God had a strange plan for the battle of Jericho. He told Joshua to have the armed men march around the city once each day, for six days. The priests were to carry the ark, blowing trumpets, but the soldiers were to keep silent.

On the seventh day, the assembly marched around the walls of Jericho seven times. Joshua told them that by God's order, every living thing in the city must be destroyed, except Rahab and her family. All articles of silver, gold, bronze and iron were to go into the Lord's treasury.

At Joshua's command, the men gave a great shout, and Jericho's walls fell down flat! The Israelite army rushed in and conquered the city. Only Rahab and her family were spared.   Read more.   

1446 B.C. E. is the date for the battle of Jericho.

The Quran was collected into a manuscript in 634 C.E.

It is widely believed the first Muslim jihad was after 622 C.E.

So, the first Muslim jihad took place about 600 years after the death of Jesus, according to biblical timelines.   

I am not trying to justify anyone’s war; in fact, I have a huge disdain for war; but, how would you feel if you were Muslim?  And, I think we are extremely fortunate that we live in a country where religious freedoms are tolerated along with our freedoms of speech.