Page:Judaism and Islam, a prize essay - Geiger - 1898.pdf/135

 JOSEPH. 117

Ishmaelites who went to draw water found Joseph - in the pit is against the clear word of the Scripture that the pit was dry. 1 Muhammad makes Joseph expound Pharaoh's dream, and only afterwards does he have him fetched from prison, 2 in contradiction to the Bible narrative. 3 He asserts that Jacob became blind from grief, but that he recovered his sight by the application of a shirt to his eyes. He was perhaps thinking of .Jacob's loss of sight 4 later on, or possibly the idea is based on some legend unknown to me. According to the Quran Joseph's parents 5 came to him in Egypt, in spite of the fact that according to the testimony of the Scriptures 6 Eachel was long since dead. Muhammad's idea probably was to bring about a complete fulfilment of the dream, which mentions both parents. 7

On this, however, some of the Rabbis remark that this is a sign that no dream is without a mingling of some vain matter, while others say that Bilhah, Joseph's subsequent foster-mother, is alluded to. Something like this is quoted by Zamakhshari, to the effect that " this means his father and his aunt ; " 8 while Elpherar has 9 still more clearly : " Katada and Sada say that by the moon is meant his aunt, because his mother Rachel was already dead." Thus it is possible that Muhammad means this aunt here, even as Elpherar remarks on another

1 Genesis, xxxvii. 24. &$ 12

2 Sura XIT. 47, 50. 3 Genesis, xli. 14 ff. 4 Sura XII. 84, 93, 96. Of. Genesis, xlviii. 10.

8 Sura XII. 100, 101. 4^1 6 Genesis, xxxv. 18 ff.

7 Sura XII. 4. Of. Genesis, xxxvii. 10. Tf^NI. rjfej

8 On Sura XII. 4. &A\& ^ Sj>\ J-oS ^ ( De Sacy Anth. Gramm, page 127.)

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