The Bible and the Quran have many characters in common, many of which are mentioned by name, whereas others are merely referred to. This article is a list of people named or referred to in both the Bible and the Quran.
Image | Bible (English) | Quran (Arabic) | Rabbinic (Hebrew) | Notes | Bible Verse | Quaranic Verse |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aaron | Hārūn/ Haarūn | Aharon | Exodus 7:1 | Quran 19:28 [1] | ||
Abraham | Ibrāhīm/ Ebraheem/ Ebrahim/ Ibrāheem | Avraham | Genesis 17:3–5 | Quran 2:124 | ||
Adam | Ādam | Adam | Genesis 5:2 | Quran 3:59 | ||
Amram | ʿImrān/'Emrān | Amram | Islamic tradition holds both Amram and Joachim are named the same. Although Islamic studies of the beginning of the 20th century tended to note genealogical discrepancies, in more recent Islamic Studies of the 21st century the general consensus is that the Quran does not make a genealogical error but instead makes use of typology. [2] This is supported by the figurative speech of the Quran and the Islamic tradition, as words like "sister" and "daughter" can indicate extended kinship, descendance or spiritual affinity. [3] [4] [5] [6] | Exodus 6:20 | Quran 3:33 | |
King David | Dāwūd/Dāūd | Dawid | 1 Samuel 17:58 | Quran 2:251 | ||
The Apostles | al-Hawariyyūn | Mark 3:16–19 | Quran 61:14 [7] | |||
Elijah (Elias) | Ilyās/Elyās | Eliyyahu | 2 Kings 1:8 | Quran 37:123 | ||
Elisha | al-Yasaʿ | Elishaʿ | Also can be pronounced Alīsaʿ | 1 Kings 19:16 | Quran 6:86 | |
Enoch | Idrīs | Chanokh | Idris is not universally identified with Enoch, many Muslim scholars of the classical and medieval periods also held that Idris and Hermes Trismegistus were the same person. [8] [9] | Genesis 5:24 | Quran 19:56 | |
Ezekiel | Ḥizkīl "Dhul-Kifl" | Yechezkel | Ezekiel 1:3 | Quran 38:48 | ||
Ezra/Esdras | ʿUzair or Idris | Ezra | Ezra 7:1 | Quran 9:30 | ||
Gabriel | Jibrīl | Gavri'el | Luke 1:19 | Quran 2:97 | ||
Gog and Magog | Ya'juj wa-Ma'juj | Gog U-Magog | Ezekiel 38:2 | Quran 21:96 | ||
Goliath | Jālūṭ | Golyat | 1 Samuel 17:4 | Quran 2:251 | ||
Isaac | Isħāq | Yitzhak | Genesis 17:19 | Quran 19:49 | ||
Ishmael | Ismāʿīl | Yishmaʿel | Genesis 16:11 | Quran 38:48 | ||
Jacob | Yaʿkūb | Yaʿkov | Genesis 32:1 | Quran 19:49 | ||
Jethro | Shoʿeib | Yitro | Exodus 3:1 | Quran 26:177 | ||
Jesus | ʿĪsā | Yeshua | Matthew 1:16 | Quran 3:59 | ||
Joachim or Heli | ʿImrān | Yehoyaqim | Islamic tradition holds both Joachim and Amram are named the same, though the Quran only refers to Joachim with the name of Amram and calls Mary the sister of Aaron, [10] Muslims see this as connecting the two women from two prophetic households in spirit. This question was actually reported to have been put across to Muhammad to which he replied: "The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them". [11] | Luke 3:23 | ||
Job | ʾAyyūb | Iyyov | Job 1:1 | Quran 6:84 | ||
John the Baptist | Yaḥyā | Yohanan | Yaḥyā means 'living' as opposed to Yūḥānna ('graceful'), which comes from Hebrew Yoḥanan. | Luke 1:13 | Quran 19:7 | |
Jonah | Yūnas/ Yūnes/ Yūnus/ Yūnis "Dhun-Nun" | Yonah | Possibly derived from Greek Ionas | Jonah 3:4 | Quran 37:139 | |
Joseph | Yūsif | Yosef | Genesis 30:24 | Quran 6:84 | ||
Lot | Lūṭ | Lot | Genesis 11:27 | Quran 66:10 | ||
Lot's wife | Lūṭ's wife | She is nameless both in the Bible and in the Quran. | Genesis 19:26 | Quran 26:170 | ||
Mary | Maryam | Mariam | Matthew 1:16 | Quran 19:34 | ||
Miriam | Mūsā's sister | Miriam | Exodus 6:20 | Quran 28:11 | ||
Michael | Mīkāīl | Mikhael | Revelation 12:7 | Quran 02:98 | ||
Moses | Mūsā | Moshe | Exodus 6:20 | Quran 33:7 | ||
Noah | Nūḥ | Nukh | Genesis 5:29 | Quran 33:7 | ||
Pharaoh | Firʿawn | Paroh | Exodus 1:11 | Quran 20:60 | ||
Queen of Sheba | Queen of Sabaʾ; Bilqīs | Malkat Saba | She is nameless both in the Bible and in the Quran, but the name Bilqīs or Balqīs comes from Islamic tradition. | 1 Kings 10:1 | Quran 27:29 | |
Saul the King | Ṭālūt | Sha'ul | Literally 'Tall'; Meant to rhyme with Lūṭ or Jālūṭ. | 1 Samuel 17:33 | Quran 2:247 | |
Devil or Satan | Shaitān / Iblīs | HaSatan | Iblīs, literally 'despaired'; Possibly derived from Greek Diabolus. | Genesis 3:14 | Quran 7:11 | |
Solomon | Sulaymān | Shlomoh | 1 Kings 10:23 | Quran 34:12 | ||
Zechariah | Zakariyyā | Zekaryah | Luke 1:13 | Quran 19:7 | ||
Zimri (prince) | As-Samiriyy | Zimri ben Salu | Al-Samīri is arguably derived from Eastern Syriac 'Zamri, which is derived from Hebrew Zimri. | Numbers 25:14 | Quran 20:85 |
Sarah, Hagar, Zipporah, Elizabeth, Raphael, Cain and Abel, Korah, Joseph's brothers, Potiphar and his wife, Eve, Jochebed, Samuel, Noah's sons, and Noah's wife are mentioned, but unnamed in the Quran.
In Islamic tradition, these people are given the following names:
Image | Bible (English) | Arabic | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Abel | Habil | ||
Benjamin | Binyamīn | ||
Cain | Qabil | ||
Canaan | Kan'an | It is not clear if Canaan and Kan'an are the same person, as he is Nuh's son rather than his grandson. [12] | |
Elizabeth | ʾIlīṣābāt or Elīsābāt | ||
Eve | Hawah | ||
Hagar | Hajar | ||
Ham | Ham | ||
Japheth | Yafes | ||
Jochebed | Yūkābid | ||
Joshua | Yusha-bin-Noon | ||
Korah | Qārūn | ||
Potiphar | Azeez | ||
Raphael | Isrāfīl | ||
Samuel | Samu'il | ||
Sarah | Sara | ||
Shem | Sam |
The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God (Allah). It is organized in 114 chapters which consist of individual verses. Besides its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature, and has significantly influenced the Arabic language. It is also the object of a modern field of academic research known as Quranic studies.
Sheba is an ancient kingdom mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran. It particularly features in the tradition of Orthodox Tewahedo in today's Yemen and is also asserted as the home of the Queen of Sheba, who is left unnamed in Jewish texts, but is known as Makeda in Ethiopian texts and as Bilqīs in Arabic texts. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, Sheba was the home of Princess Tharbis, who is said to have been the wife of Moses before he married Zipporah.
In Islam, Jesus is believed to be the penultimate prophet and messenger of God and the Messiah sent to guide the Children of Israel with a book called the Injīl.
Noah, also known as Nuh, is recognized in Islam as a prophet and messenger of God. He is also believed to be the first messenger sent by God. He is one of the Ulul 'azm prophets. Noah's mission was to warn his people, who were plunged in idol worshipping. God charged Noah with the duty of preaching to his people, advising them to abandon idolatry and to worship only God, and to live good and pure lives. Although he preached the Message of God with zeal, his people refused to mend their ways, leading to building the Ark and the Deluge, the Great Flood. In Islamic tradition, it is disputed whether the Great Flood was a global or a local one. Noah's preaching and prophethood spanned 950 years according to the Quran, ahadith and tafsir.
Shuaib, Shoaib, Shuayb or Shuʿayb is an ancient Midianite Prophet in Islam, and the most revered prophet in the Druze faith. Shuayb is traditionally identified with the biblical Jethro, Moses' father-in-law. Shuaib is mentioned in the Quran a total of 11 times. He is believed to have lived after Abraham, and Muslims believe that he was sent as a prophet to a community: the Midianites, who are also known as the Aṣḥāb al-Aykah, since they used to worship a large tree. To the people, Shuaib proclaimed the straight path and warned the people to end their fraudulent ways. When the community did not repent, God destroyed the community.
Injil is the Arabic name for the Gospel of Jesus (Isa). This Injil is described by the Qur'an as one of the four Islamic holy books which was revealed by Allah, the others being the Zabur, the Tawrat, and the Qur'an itself. The word Injil is also used in the Qur’an, the hadith and early Muslim documents to refer to both a book and revelations made by God to Jesus.
Al Imran is the third chapter (sūrah) of the Quran with two hundred verses (āyāt).
The mysterious letters are combinations of between one and five Arabic letters that appear at the beginning of 29 out of the 114 chapters (surahs) of the Quran just after the Bismillāh Islamic phrase. The letters are also known as fawātiḥ (فَوَاتِح) or "openers" as they form the opening verse of their respective surahs.
Maryam is the 19th chapter of the Qur'an with 98 verses. The 114 chapters in the Quran are roughly ordered by size. The Quranic chapter is named after Mary, mother of Jesus, and the Virgin Mary in Christian belief. It recounts the events leading up to the birth of Jesus. The text of the surah refers to many known prophetic figures, including Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Ishmael, Idris, Adam, Zechariah and Noah.
Asiya bint Muzahim was, according to the Qur'an and Islamic tradition, the wife of the Pharaoh of the Exodus.
Maryam bint Imran is revered in Islam. The Qur'an refers to her seventy times and explicitly identifies her as the greatest woman to have ever lived. In the Quran, her story is related in three Meccan surahs and four Medinan surahs. The nineteenth Surah, Maryam, is named after her. Moreover, she is the only woman named in the Quran.
The Tawrat, also romanized as Tawrah or Taurat, is the Arabic-language name for the Torah within its context as an Islamic holy book believed by Muslims to have been given by God to the prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel. In the Qur'an, the word 'Tawrat' occurs eighteen times. When referring to traditions from the Tawrat, Muslims have not only identified it with the Pentateuch, but also with the other books of the Hebrew Bible as well as with Talmudic and Midrashic writings.
Indeed, We sent down the Torah, in which was guidance and light. The prophets who submitted [to God] judged by it for the Jews, as did the rabbis and scholars by that with which they were entrusted of the Scripture of God, and they were witnesses thereto. So do not fear the people but fear Me, and do not exchange My verses for a small price [i.e., worldly gain]. And whoever does not judge by what God has revealed - then it is those who are the disbelievers.
Mount Judi is a mountain in Turkey. It was considered in antiquity to be Noah's apobaterion or "Place of Descent", the location where the Ark came to rest after the Great Flood, according to very early Christian and Islamic traditions. The Quranic tradition is part of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic legend. The identification of biblical Ararat with Mount Judi as the landing site of the ark persisted in Syriac and Armenian tradition throughout Late Antiquity. Only during the Middle Ages was this identification abandoned in favour of another mountain, which had not until then been referred to by any of the native peoples as Mount Ararat.
men in the Quran are important characters and subjects of discussion included in the stories and morals taught in Islam. Most of the women in the Quran are represented as either mothers or wives of leaders or prophets. They retained a certain amount of autonomy from men in some respects; for example, the Quran describes women who converted to Islam before their husbands or women who took an independent oath of allegiance to Muhammad.
A number of terms are used in Islam to refer to the claims of events happening that are not explicable by natural or scientific laws, subjects where people sometimes invoke the supernatural. In the Quran the term āyah refers to signs in the context of miracles of God's creation and of the prophets and messengers. In later Islamic sources miracles of the prophets were referred to by Muʿjiza (مُعْجِزَة), literally meaning "that by means of which [the Prophet] confounds, overwhelms, his opponents"), while miracles of saints are referred to as karamat (charismata).
The Quran contains references to more than fifty people and events also found in the Bible. While the stories told in each book are generally comparable, there are also some notable differences.
Islamic holy books are certain religious scriptures that are viewed by Muslims as having valid divine significance, in that they were authored by God (Allah) through a variety of prophets and messengers, including those who predate the Quran. Among the group of religious texts considered to be valid revelations, the three that are mentioned by name in the Quran are the Tawrat, received by prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel; the Zabur (Psalms), received by David; and the Injeel, received by Jesus. Additionally, the Quran mentions God's revealing of the Scrolls of Abraham and the Scrolls of Moses.
Idris is an ancient prophet mentioned in the Qur'an, who Muslims believe was the third prophet after Seth. He is the third prophet mentioned in the Quran. Islamic tradition has unanimously identified Idris with the biblical Enoch. Many Muslim scholars of the classical and medieval periods held that Idris and Hermes Trismegistus were the same person.
The Quran states that several prior writings constitute holy books given by God to the prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel, in the same way the Quran was revealed to Muhammad. These include the Tawrat, believed by Muslims to have been given by God to the prophets and messengers amongst the Children of Israel, the Zabur revealed to David (Dawud); and the Injil revealed to Jesus (Isa).
Prophets in Islam are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God's message on Earth and serve as models of ideal human behaviour. Some prophets are categorized as messengers, those who transmit divine revelation, most of them through the interaction of an angel. Muslims believe that many prophets existed, including many not mentioned in the Quran. The Quran states: "And for every community there is a messenger." Belief in the Islamic prophets is one of the six articles of the Islamic faith.