Page:Judaism and Islam, a prize essay - Geiger - 1898.pdf/168

 150 JUDAISM AND ISll&I.

cases, and one of the greatest of men sinned. For it is written : l The king shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses. Then Solomon thought, I will get me many horses and not send to Egypt; but it is written : 2 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver." A story about spirits, which is said to have happened in Solomon's time, 3 has already been mentioned in connection with Noah. A story about the ants, which fled before Solomon's army, is related in the Quran, 4 and remains to be noticed. It is evidently founded on the verse, 5 " Gro to the ant thou

sluggard and be wise;" and based on this same

foundation we have a beautiful fable in the Talmud, 6 but I could find there no trace of the story given in the Quran.

The story of the lapwing 7 has gained a firm foot hold in Arabic legend, and a pretty myth about the bird is found in Fakihat Elcholaf a. 8 For Muhammad there were no very important personages between Moses and Jesus ; and such as he does mention he merely alludes to. This is not to be wondered at when Solomon, the wise man of the East, who is endowed with all manner of legendary adornment comes, comparatively speaking, so little before us in the Quran.

1 Deuteronomy, xvii. 16. 2 1 Kings, x. 29.

3 Sura II. 96. 4 Sura XXYII. 18-9,

5 Proverbs, vi. 6 ff. 6 Chullin, 57. 2,

7

G-.

8 Pago 91,