S ° 4 A l K O R A N . C h a p . 108.
CHAP. CVII.
Intitled, Neceflaries; ’where it was revealed is difputed.
In the name of the moft merciful G od.
WH A T thinkeft thou of him who denieth the future judgment as a
falfhood? It is he who pufheth away the orphana; and ftirreth not up
ethers to feed the poor. Wo be unto thole who pray, and who are negligent at
their prayer 5 who play the hypocrites, and deny neceflaries b to the needy
* Who pujbeth away the orphan ; ] The perfon properly fignifies utenfils, or whatever is of ne-
here intended, according to fome, was Abu ceffary ufe, as a hatchet, a pot, a di(h, and a
ja b l, who turned away an orphan, to whom needle, to wliich fome add a bucket, and a band•
he was guardian, and who came to him naked, mill i or, according to a tradition of Ayejha,
and asked for fome relief out of his own money, fire, water, and fait i and this fignification it
Some fay it was Abu Sofian, who having killed bore in the time of ignorance: but fince the
a camel, when an orphan begged a piece of eftabliftiment of the Mohammedan religion, the
the flelh, beat him away with his ftaff; and o- word has been ufed to denote alms, either legal,
thers think it was alWalid Ebn al Mogheira, or voluntary ; which feen|s to be the true
See. meaning in this place.
b Necejfaries; ] The original word al Maun
CHAP. CVIII.
Intitled, a l C a w t h a r ; revealed at M e c c a *.
In the name of the moft merciful God.
V E R I L Y we have given thee
• There are fome, however, who think it to
have been revealed at Medina.
bAlCawthar.] This word iignifies abundance,
efpecially of good, and thence the gift of wifdom
and prophecy, the Koran, the office of interceffor,
See. Or it may imply abundance of children,
followers, and the like. It is generally, however,
expounded of a river in paradife of that
al Cawthar b. Wherefore pray unto
thy
name, whence the water is derived into Mo*
bammed'& pond, of which the blefied are to
drink before their admiftion into that place1.
According to a tradition of the prophet's, this
river, wherein his Lord promifed him abundant
good, is Tweeter than honey, whiter than
milk, cooler than fnow, and fmoother than
cream; its banks are of chryfolites, and the vef-
• felt
C h a p . 10 9. A l K O R A N . 50$
thy. L ord ; and (lay the victims a. Verily he who hateth thee (hall be
childlefs b.
fels to drink, thereout, of filver s and thofe who in the valley of Mina. Al Beidawi explains the
drink of it ihall gever thirft Sf words thus: Pray with fervency and intenfe de-
Euthymius ZigabenUs 2, inftead of Cauthar, votion, not out of hypocrify; and flay the fatreading
Canthar, fuppbfes the word to. have the ted camels and oxen, and Attribute the flelh a-
fame fignification in Arabic as in Greek, and mong the poor: for he fays this chapter is the
tranflates the two firft verfes of the chapter thus j counterpart of the preceding, exhorting to
-H^hc AM khuv n t li t Mrdct&r $ Ivgai thofe vertues which are oppofite to the vices
argjs ‘T’ Kuesbp an, igj e,d{£.v- i. e. We have there condemned.
given tbee the beetle i wherefore fray unto tby b He who hateth thee, Jhall be childlefs-1 Thefe
L ord, and flay it: and then he cries out, O words were revealed againfl at As Ebn Wayel,
wonderful and magnificent Jacrifice, worthy of the -who, on the death of al Kafem, Mohammed s
legtflater ! f°n> called that prophet Abtar, which iignifies
a Pray unto thy Lord, and flay the vidtims i]| one who has no children, or pofterity ’ .
Which are to be facrificed, at the pilgrimage,
1 Al Bkidawi, Ja l l a l . &c. * In Panoplia dogmat. inter Sy lburg ii Saracenic, p. 29.
3 Ja lla l.
CHAP. CIX.
Intitled, The Unbelievers; revealed, at Mecca.
In the name of the moft merciful God.
SA Y : O unbelieversa, I will not worlhip that which ye worlhip ; nor
will ye worlhip that which I worlhip: Neither do I worlhip that
which ye worlhip ; neither do ye worlhip that which I worlhip. Ye have
your religion, and I my religion.
a O Unbelievers, See.] I t is faid that certain of they would worlhip his G od for th e fame
the Koreijh once propofed to Mohammed, that fpace of time i upon which this chapter was
if he would worlhip their gods for a year, revealed ' .
1 Idem, A l Be id aw i,
T t t C H A P .