Some people are convinced that there is a difference between the Bible and the Qur’an regarding Adam’s sin and its transmission to the future generations.

At the light of the principles issued in “A Look of Faith at the Qur’an”, we have analysed and compared the Biblical texts about Adam’s fall in Genesis with the texts of the Qur’an about Adam’s temptation and God’s reaction. That leads us automatically to consider the subject of the regaining of the Paradise or of the Garden.

In this research we have applied the principles already exposed of “relying on the Books of Enlightenment” (Qur’an XXII; Pilgrimage,8) of the Bible and the Qur’an, of “searching the spiritual meaning” of the texts without stopping at the letter (Qur’an XXII; Pilgrimage,11), and eventually to dispute “by the best” argument (Qur’an XXIX; The Spider,46).

The first report of Adam’s sin in the Qur’an

In this first report (Qur’an II; The Cow,34-39) God reveals:

“We said, ‘Adam, live with your wife in this garden. Both of you eat freely there as you will, but do not go near this tree, or you will both become wrongdoers.’ But Satan made them slip, and removed them from the state they were in. We said, ‘Get down, all of you! You will be each other’s enemy. On earth you will have a place to stay and livelihood for a time’.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,35-36)

The text of Adam’s fall in Genesis reveals in other words the same truth:

• Do not eat of the tree: “And God commanded Adam, saying: ‘of every tree of paradise you shall eat: But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat. For in what day so ever you shall eat of it, you shall die the death’” (Genesis 2,16-17).
• The Devil made them slip: “And the serpent said to the woman: ‘No, you shall not die the death. For God does know that in what day so ever you shall eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened: and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil’. And the woman saw that the tree was good to eat, and fair to the eyes, and delightful to behold: and she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave to her husband who did eat…” (Genesis 3,4-7).
• Come down: “And the Lord God sent him out of the paradise of pleasure, to till the earth from which he was taken. And he cast out Adam…” (Genesis 3,23-24).
• You will be each other’s enemy: After having been banished from Paradise, Adam had two sons Cain and Abel. Cain killed Abel for jealousy: “Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and slew him” (Genesis 4,8). After this act God cursed Cain, as well as He had cursed the snake before. Afterwards evil increased more on earth. The song of violence of Lamech in Genesis 4,23-24 reports this symbolically. Men have therefore really become each other’s enemy, as described in the Qur’an.

In the abovementioned Qur’anic text, God warned Adam not to eat the fruits from a precise tree by saying: “you will both become wrongdoers”. And further He says: “You will be each other’s enemy” This is equivalent to the spiritual death. It is the meaning of God’s warning in Genesis: “But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat. For in what day so ever you shall eat of it, you shall die the death’”.

The first report of Adam’s temptation in the Qur’an continues as follows:

“Then Adam received some words from his Lord and He accepted his repentance: He is the Ever Relenting, the Most Merciful. We said, ‘Get down, all of you! But when Guidance comes from Me, as it certainly will, there will be no fear for those who follow My Guidance nor will they grieve.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,37-38)

Adam’s repentance means the he regretted his fault. However evil had been done. He had eaten from “the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil”. That is by listening to the devil he wanted himself to decide what was good and what was wrong. In few words, he wanted to be independent of God.
This is what the Qur’an calls “to become wrongdoers”. The sin entered humanity through Adam. Nevertheless there has been a kind of repentance. This is clearly said in the Qur’an and in a symbolic way in the Bible: “And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife, garments of skins, and clothed them” (Genesis 3,21). God had then mercy of Adam, and He hided his nakedness. He took care of him. It is the symbol of the fact that God will not abandon him.
To notice that God has not cursed Adam as it happened afterwards to his son Cain who killed his brother (Genesis 4,11).

The consequence of this revolt against God again according to the Qur’an is that God told them “Get down”. That is leave this place, leave the Garden of Eden, the Paradise. Moreover in the abovementioned verse 38 God insists: “Get down all of you!” in spite of Adam’s repentance described just before. It means that not only Adam and Eve had to leave the Garden (the Paradise), but their descendants too.

Genesis says about that:

“And He (God) cast out Adam; and placed before the Garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword, turning every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” (Genesis 3,24)

We need to distinguish between Adam’s sin which is the inclination to listen to the devil and which has been inherited by all men, and the sin committed for example by our parents for which we are not responsible.

The Qur’an says about that:

“Each soul is responsible for its own actions; no soul will bear the burden of another.” (Qur’an VI; Cattle,164)

The Bible proclaims the same truth. The prophet Ezekiel had already said:

“The soul that sins, the same shall die: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, and the father shall not bear the iniquity of the son.” (Ezekiel 18,20)

And Jesus confirmed that answering to His disciples’ question about the born blind:

“And Jesus passing by, saw a man, who was blind from his birth: And his disciples asked him: Rabbi, who had sinned, this man, or his parents, that he should be born blind?” (John 9,1-2)

Finally after Adam’s fault, God leaves the door open to a future reconciliation by saying:

“Get down, all of you! But when Guidance comes from Me, as it certainly will.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,38)

That Guidance is the one given later on by the prophets of the Old Testament, by Jesus, God’s Messiah, and then by the prophet Muhammad.

Genesis reports all the same the promise of this future Guidance to find again the Way to God:

“And the Lord God said to the serpent: I will put enmities between you and the woman, and your seed and her seed: she shall crush your head, and you shall lie in wait for her heel.” (Genesis 3,15)

This woman is the Virgin Mary who gave birth to Jesus, God’s Messiah, announced by the prophets of the Old Testament and attested later by the prophet Muhammad. She has crushed the Serpent, because she and her son Jesus are the only ones who have never known the sin, as attested by the prophet Muhammad in a Hadith:

“No man is born unless the devil wounds him since his birth and he shouts loud because of this satanic wound, except Mary and her Son.”

(This verse from “The Noble Discussions” is reported in the “Jalalein” interpretation of the verse 35 of the Sura The Family of ‘Imran; it is a Hadith reported by Abi Houraira, see http://www.el-ilm.net/t1333-maryam-bint-imran. It is also reported in a slightly different way by Al Bokhari, see “The authentic Muslim tradition, selection of Hadiths”, Fasquelle, pag.48).

Jesus and Mary only have been preserved by the contamination of Adam’s sin. They have never listened to the devil’s suggestions (Qur’an CXIV; Men,1-6). They lived deep down in the Paradise, in God’s Garden, in a complete harmony with God. They never left it.

Their Mission is to open again the Way to us to come back there.

Second report of Adam’s sin in the Qur’an

The second report of Adam’s sin in the Qur’an provides us with other details.

“Satan whispered to them so as to expose their nakedness, which had been hidden from them: he said, ‘Your Lord only forbade you this tree to prevent you becoming angels or immortals’, and he swore to them, ‘I am giving you sincere advice’ he lured them with lies. Their nakedness became exposed to them when they had eaten from the tree: they began to put together leaves from the Garden to cover themselves.” (Qur’an VII; The Heights,18-22)

This rejoins perfectly the Biblical text:

“And she (Eve) took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave to her husband who did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened: and when they perceived themselves to be naked, they sewed together fig leaves, and made themselves aprons.” (Genesis 3,6-7)

The serpent therefore dangled before Adam and Eve’s eyes the perspective to become “angels or immortals” or to become “gods”. They have been enticed. They “fell” by the devil’s seduction, as the Qur’an says, and they knew they were naked. In conclusion, they lost their innocence and their inner harmony with God. Nakedness that was originally natural and pure became object of concupiscence and shame. Sin and imbalance took over. According to the Bible and the Qur’an these are the concupiscence, the imbalance in the couple, the fleeting joy, the exhausting work, the injustice, the fact of being each other’s enemy. Adam became “unhappy”.

The Qur’an continues a little further by saying:

“They (Adam and Eve) replied, ‘Our Lord, we have wronged our souls: if You do not forgive us and have mercy, we shall be lost.’ He said, ‘All of you get down! You are each other’s enemies. On earth you will have a place to stay and livelihood for a time.’ He said, ‘There you will live; there you will die; from there you will be brought out.’” (Qur’an VII; The Heights,23-25)

This text confirms that Adam and Eve did repent. They acknowledged they needed God’s forgiveness. In spite of that God told them: “Get down”. And He announced them they would have died on earth. It is clearly a confirmation of the Genesis text. God sent Adam and Eve away from Paradise, and they had to pass through the physical death. Genesis reveals that God told them:

“In the sweat of your face shall you eat bread till you return to the earth, out of which you was taken: for dust you are, and into dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3,19)

Further in that same Surah of the Qur’an, God reveals the already mentioned future Guidance:

“Children of Adam, when messengers come to you from among yourselves, reciting My revelations to you, for those who are conscious of God and live righteously, there will be no fear, nor will they grieve. But those who reject Our revelations and arrogantly scorn them are the people of the Fire and there they will remain.” (Qur’an VII; The Heights,35-36)

Now by listening to the prophets, and by changing life deeply man can find again the way to God. Muhammad summarises this way in the same Surah:

“Say, ‘My Lord commands righteousness. Direct your worship straight to Him wherever you pray; call on Him; devote your religion entirely to Him.’” (Qur’an VII; Al ‘Araf,29)

“Say, ‘My Lord only forbids disgraceful deeds– whether they be open or hidden– and sin and unjustified aggression, and that you, without His sanction, associate things (money, irregular pleasures etc.) with Him, and that you say things about Him without knowledge.’” (Qur’an VII; Al ‘Araf,33)

Man is free to come back to God through the Way that is indicated, or to keep on following the devil’s suggestions.

Adam’s sin is the disposition to listen to the Devil. This attitude established a wall between man and God. The prophet Isaiah had already said:

“But your iniquities have divided between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you that He should not hear.” (Isaiah 59,2)

And the prophet David confirms:

“For behold I was conceived in iniquities: and in sins did my mother conceive me.” (Psalm 50,7)

Adam and Eve should have never listened to the Serpent’s voice. We must not talk to the devil. We close the door at him.

The book of Wisdom summarises in this way Adam’s sin:

“For God created man incorruptible, and to the image of his own likeness he made him. But by the envy of the devil, death came into the world: And they follow him that are of his side.” (Wisdom 2,23-25)

We need to oppose to them Jesus’ words:

“Amen, amen I say unto you, that he who hears my word, and believes him that sent me, had life everlasting; and comes not into judgment, but is passed from death to life. Amen, amen I say unto you, that the hour comes, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has given the Son also to have life in himself: And he has given him power to do judgment, because he is the Son of man.” (John 5,24-27)

And also these words from Jesus to Martha, Lazarus’ sister:

“I am the resurrection and the life: he that believes in me, although he be dead, shall live: And every one that lives, and believes in me, shall not die forever.” (John 11,25-26)

It is the resurrection of the soul that listens to the words of Life, that is nourished by them, and “amend” its life according to Muhammad’s words: “those who fear God and amend, there will be no fear, nor will they grieve” (Qur’an VII; Al ‘Araf,35; see also 1 John 3,14).

Today this amendment comes through the commitment against the Antichrist. And Jesus and Muhammad perfectly agree about that too (voir “The Antichrist in the Islam” et “The Revelation according to Muhammad”).

In the end, this brief comparison between the texts of the Qur’an and the Bible shows that the two Inspired Books perfectly agree. Prophet Muhammad reported a summary of Adam’s fall and of the story of his descendants. The report of the one completes that of the other as the Qur’an Itself says:

“A Book of revelation (the Qur’an) well expounded, an Arabic Qur’an (reading) for people who understand. You (Muhammad) are not told anything that the previous (biblical) messengers were not told…” (Qur’an XLI; Revelations well expounded,3 and 43-44). (voir “A Look of Faith at the Qur’an”)

Therefore there is no contradiction between the text of Adam’s fall in the Bible and that of Adam’s sin in the Qur’an.
Moreover the Qur’an rejoins perfectly the biblical report according to God’s words just after the first report of Adam’s fall:

“Children of Israel… Have faith in My Revelation (the Qur’an), which confirms your Scripture (the Bible).” (Qur’an II; The Cow,40-41)

Third report of Adam’s sin in the Qur’an

The third report of Adam’s sin in the Qur’an still clarifies other aspects:

“We said, ‘Adam, this is your enemy, yours and your wife’s: do not let him drive you out of the garden and make you miserable. In the garden you will never go hungry, feel naked, be thirsty, or suffer the heat of the sun.’ But Satan whispered to Adam, saying, ‘Adam, shall I show you the tree of immortality and of a kingdom that never decays?’” (Qur’an XX; Ta Ha,117-120)

God describes this way the state of the Garden: no hunger, no nakedness, no thirst, no suffering from the sun heat. It is the inner state of the soul completely satiated with God’s Love and Splendour. There the soul is innocent and pure and doesn’t know nakedness. Its thirst is quenched by the vision of God’s Perfection. It is impervious to the heat of the false sun of the lie. It is the state of happiness and inner harmony of the one who is completely connected to God.

In the Revelation John describes with the same words the inner state of those who have triumphed over the Great Trial of the Beast and who are dressed with white robes:

“And one of the ancients answered, and said to me: ‘These that are clothed in white robes, who are they? and whence came they?’ And I said to him: ‘My Lord, you knows’. And he said to me: ‘These are they who are come out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and have made them white in the blood of the Lamb (Jesus). Therefore they are before the throne of God, and they serve him day and night in his temple: and he, that sits on the throne, shall dwell over them. They shall no more hunger nor thirst, neither shall the sun fall on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb, which is in the midst of the throne, shall rule them, and shall lead them to the fountains of the waters of life, and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” (Revelation 7,13-17)

In few words, the complete commitment against the Beast on all levels enables man to regain the inner lost Paradise. It is God’s great Reward to His faithful Witnesses, those who have resisted to the Beast just to the end.

Finally in the abovementioned Surah Ta Ha, the devil dangles before Adam’s eyes the perspective of “the Tree of immortality” and a “kingdom that never decays”. He wants to convince him to accept an earthly kingdom with a temporal power. Adam falls into the trap and accepts. The text continues by saying: “and they both ate from it. They became conscious of their nakedness and began to cover themselves with leaves from the garden. Adam disobeyed his Lord and was led astray” (Qur’an XX; Ta Ha,121).

By accepting the earthly kingdom offered by the devil, Adam finds himself “unhappy”.

It is todays Zionists situation. The devil offered them a powerful earthly kingdom, and they accepted, giving birth to the unfair State of Israel, the Antichrist announced by Jesus and Muhammad. This State is doomed to an absolute defeat, because it has challenged God (1 Samuel 8,7: “For they have not rejected you, but me (God), that I should not reign over them”. See the text “The Drama of Jesus”).

Jesus, on the contrary, had refused the earthly kingdom the devil had offered Him:

“Again the devil took Him up into a very high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and said to him: All these will I give you, if falling down you will adore me. Then Jesus said to him: Begone, Satan: for it is written, The Lord your God shall you adore, and him only shall you serve. Then the devil left Him; and behold angels came and ministered to Him.” (Matthew 4,8-11)

Jesus, thanks to His refusal of an earthly kingdom, wiped off Adam’s fault and opened to us the Way of the Return to God our Father.

Paul says:

“For by a man came death, and by a man the resurrection of the dead. And as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15,20-22; meditate also Romans 5,10-21)

Jesus’ triumph over the devil realises in two times. At a first time on the Cross “now shall the prince of this world be cast out” (John 12,31). “My kingdom is not of this world”, He answered to Pilate (John 18,36) just before being condemned. Jesus preferred to go up to the Cross, rather than to accept an earthly kingdom. By dying on the Cross He eradicated from the hearts of His Apostles the waiting of a Zionist Messiah and of a Zionist Kingdom. And He eradicates also from the heart of all His future disciples the allurement of materialism and of power which are another kind of Zionism.

At a second time Jesus triumphs by His Return already begun today. This triumph will accomplish perfectly when the children of the Virgin Mary, Jesus’ Mother, who are also the worthy children of Fatima, and all those who support them, animated by Jesus and Muhammad’s Spirit, will definitely crush Israel, the Beast of the Revelation (voir “The Key of the Revelation” et “The Revelation according to Muhammad”).

Then many souls will come back to true life (Revelation 20,13). It is the First Resurrection; it is the Resurrection of the soul that comes back to Life (Revelation 20,5). They will enter again the inner Paradise of peace, love and justice, and they will be able to eat again from “the Tree of Life”:

“Blessed are they that wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb: that they may have a right to the tree of Life, and may enter in by the gates into the City.” (Revelation 22,14)

Through the fight against the Antichrist, animated by Jesus’ Spirit, on His Return among us, and by Muhammad’s Spirit, men have the chance to regain the state of inner harmony and love with God, lost with Adam. They shall “have at their disposal the tree of Life”. It is the regaining of the lost Paradise.

This Regaining is done in a particularly efficacious way by the Bread of Life, divine Gift to all those who will have committed themselves to this fight (Revelation 3,20). It is the Table coming down from Heaven, which the prophet Muhammad talked of:

“When the disciples said, ‘Jesus, son of Mary, can your Lord send down a (laid) Table to us from Heaven?’ He said, ‘Beware of God if you are true believers.’ They said, ‘We wish to eat from it; to have our hearts reassured; to know that you have told us the truth; and to be witnesses of it (the Table).’ Jesus, son of Mary, said, ‘Lord, send down to us a (laid) Table from Heaven so that we can have a festival– the first and last of us– and a sign from You. Provide for us: You are the best provider.’ God said, ‘I will send it down to you, but anyone who disbelieves after this will be punished with a punishment that I will not inflict on anyone else in the world’.” (Qur’an V; The Table,112-115)

Blessed the ones who are nourished by this Table of “Festival” which opens to us again the door of Paradise!

(voir “The Bread of Life in the Bible and in the Qur’an”, “Bread of Life and new Priesthood”, “Jesus restores Priesthood”).

Why is that Table so important?

Jesus is the only one to come into this world with no stain of sin. His Mother had been preserved from any stain to surround Him with purity and with a heavenly environment.

By accepting to shed His Blood on the Cross, He has remedied our faults, as the prophet Isaiah had announced 7 centuries before: “But he was wounded for our iniquities, he was bruised for our sins: the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his bruises we are healed” (Isaiah 53,5).

His Blood washes the consequences of Adam’s stain into us. He only, God’s Word and God’s Spirit (Qur’an IV; Women,171), could do that.

This is way Jesus’ Supper, which is a sacrifice, washes our soul so powerfully. Indeed this holy Supper is the participation to Jesus’ Cross and put to death as the Body and the Blood are separated as on the Cross.

Before His Passion, Jesus taking some bread and a cup of wine said to His Apostles:

“Take you, and eat. This is my Body, which is sacrificed for you unto remission of sins.
Drink you all of this. For this is My Blood of the New Covenant, which shall be shed for you and for many unto Remission of sins. Do this for a commemoration of me.” (Luke 22,19-20 / Matthew 26,26-29)

The expressions “sacrificed for you” and “shed for you” indicate the Sacrifice done in the present. Thus is accomplished the prophecy of Malachi 1,10-11 where God proclaims: “But from farthest east to farthest west my name is great among the nations, and everywhere incense and a pure gift are offered to my name, since my name is great among the nations.”

Jesus’ Words about the Bread of Life are, and will always be, an eternal Life for all those who are nourished by It (meditate deeply John 6,32-63).

And Muhammad underlines:

“Hell will be the reward of those who return to their Lord as evildoers: there they will stay, neither living nor dying. But those who return to their Lord as believers with righteous deeds will be rewarded with the highest of ranks of Gardens of Eden of lasting bliss graced with flowing streams, and there they will stay. Such is the reward of those who purify themselves.” (Qur’an XX; Ta Ha,74-76)

To purify oneself equals to “wash one’s robe”. Revelation says:

“Blessed are they that wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb: that they may have a right to the Tree of Life, and may enter in by the gates into the city.” (Revelation 22,14)

It is the Regaining of Paradise. Through the Fight against the Antichrist and the participation to Jesus’ Supper, the Regaining becomes possible from down here.

Finally God says to the prophet Muhammad in the Qur’an:

“Truly We have opened up a path to clear triumph for you, so that God may forgive you your past and future sins, complete His grace upon you, guide you to a straight path, and help you mightily. It was He who made His tranquillity descend into the hearts of the believers, to add faith to their faith -the forces of the Heavens and Earth belong to God; He is all knowing and all wise- so as to admit believing men and women into Gardens graced with flowing streams, there to remain, absolving their bad deeds – a great triumph in God’s eyes -!” (Qur’an XLVIII; Triumph,1-5)

And also:

“Here is a picture of the Garden promised to the pious: rivers of water forever pure, rivers of milk forever fresh, rivers of wine, a delight for those who drink, rivers of honey clarified and pure, flow in it; there they will find fruit of every kind; and they will find forgiveness from their Lord…” (Compare to the Song of Songs 5,1) (Qur’an XLVII; Muhammad,15)

These “rivers of water forever pure” and the “rivers of wine, a delight for those who drink” correspond clearly to the Communion to the Blood of Jesus that washes us and introduces us again to the lost Paradise.

BR (18.02.2015)