1 – Biblical Order of Prophets (Adam till Medieval Period)

Biblical Order of Prophets (Adam till Medieval Period)

https://ehknowledge.com/66-books-protestant-bible-for-nonchristians/

Reading and understanding Biblical Order of Prophets through religious texts are entirely two different facets of any belief system. Consequently interpretation of religious text always brought sects and branches into any particular religion. But same may not be the case of people and prophets referred in the religious texts. Abrahamic religious books have references of some great peoples and prophets from the past however it always remained difficult to keep them in chronological order in history.

Humble Forgiveness in Biblical Order Series

I do not have any particular religious study or authority to write about such great people from the past but I thought it important to just put them in an order for understanding without touching religious sentiments and sectarian sensitivities.

In case of any omission or wrong interpretation I will look forward to in my comments box and seek forgiveness against my humble effort.

Comparison of Names in Hebrew Bible and Holy Koran

Before proceeding to the Holy Prophets; I would like to narrate the significant names of prophets in Hebrew Bible and Holy Koran for better understanding and reference in article. The names written in Bold and Italic are prophets mentioned in Holy Koran while names in () are same prophets mentioned in Hebrew Bible.

Prophet ʾĀdam (Adam); Prophet ʾIdrīs (Enoch); Prophet Nūḥ (Noah); Prophet Hūd (Eber). Prophet ṢāliḥʾIbrāhīm (Abraham); Prophet Lūṭ (Lot); Prophet ʾIsmāʿīl (Ishmael); Prophet ʾIsḥāq (Isaac); Prophet Yaʿqūb (Jacob); Prophet Yūsuf (Joseph); Prophet Ayūb (Job); Prophet Dhul-Kifl (Ezekiel); Prophet Shuʿayb (Jethro); Prophet Mūsā (Moses); Prophet Hārūn (Aaron); Prophet Dāūd (David); Prophet Sulaymān (Solomon); Prophet Yūnus (Jonah); Prophet ʾIlyās (Elijah); Prophet Alyasaʿ (Elisha); Prophet Zakarīya (Zechariah); Prophet Yaḥyā (John); Prophet ʿĪsā (Jesus); Prophet Muḥammad SAW (Muhammad).

Prophet Adam and Eve in Biblical Order

According to the Book of Genesis, the first two humans were named Prophet Adamand Eve and they were created directly by God. Now, according to modern DNA research, all humans alive today can in fact be traced back to a single male ancestor (named Y-Chromosomal Adam) and a single female ancestor (Mitochondrial Eve). However it is believed that these two DNA ancestors are very different from the Prophet Adam and Eve from the biblical story.

According to the Biblical Account, Prophet Adam and Eve were a couple and initially, the only two humans on earth. Eventually though, after being punished out of the Garden of Eden, they had two sons named Cain and Abel. Cain was a farmer and Abel was a shepherd. But one day, Cain ended up killing his brother Abel out of jealousy.

Children of Adm and Eve

As per biblical order; Prophet Adam and Eve went on to have a third son, named Seth, as well as other children. It is from Seth’s line that we eventually get the next major character in the Bible Prophet Noah. It is important to highlight that both Cain’s line and Seth’s line are recorded in the Bible and that they have some interesting similarities. Both contain a series of six names that are almost identical except for one small sequence in order and alternate spellings.

One possibility is that both genealogies share a common origin. In other words, maybe there was originally one list of ancestors that was passed down orally but over the centuries, people in one area remembered the names in a slightly different way and eventually it developed into a parallel tradition. Then, at some later point, editors combined the two traditions and made it seem like they were separate genealogies. God Almighty knows the best.

Prophet Noah

Prophet Noah built the large boat, called the Noah’s Ark, and filled it with all species of animals. This is because God Almighty decided to destroy the earth in a Flood, and then start all over again with Prophet Noah and his family being only survivors.

Flood history is a common theme found in cultures throughout the world. This seems to ascertain that there have been a major flood event that was retained in humanity’s collective memory. While comparing the historically evident timeline, it is evident that around the year 2900 BCE, there was a devastating flood in Sumer.

Prophet Noah’s Sons

According to the Bible, Prophet Noah had three sons and therefore everyone alive on earth today is a descendant of either Shem, Ham, or Japeth. This is where the idea of there being three distinct human races comes from, usually named White, Black, and Yellow. However it is assumed that this idea is NOT true.

According to few researchers modern DNA probe shows that we can divide people into hundreds of different ethnicities, based on regional genetic variation. There is no genetic marker that allows us to group them together into just a handful of categories called races. The closest thing would be to group ethnicities by continent but even there, the categories would overlap quite a bit and they would not line up very nicely with continental lines.

Shem, Ham and Japeth

According to biblical account Shem had 5 sons, Ham had 4, and Japeth had 7. Prophet Noah had 16 grandsons. In most cases, the names of those 16 grandsons match perfectly with the names of nations that existed in the Middle East likely during the time when the Bible was written.

If we concentrate at Ham first and locations of his sons. It is concluded that Ham was primarily associated with Africa. In fact, the term “Hamitic” was used to refer to language groups from North Africa. The most important Hamitic nation was Mits-ra-yeem. This was and is the Hebrew word for Egypt but it was also the Ancient Babylonian word for Egypt. Most of names of Prophet Noah’s grandsons are not the names of people. They are quite clearly place names. Canaan and Cush being two more examples.

Japheth - Wikiwand

Descendants of Shem

Turning our attention to the Descendants of Shem, there are also several recognizable place names here too. Aram being an ancient name for Syria, Asshur being an alternate name for Assyria, and Elam being a nation that existed on the Iranian Plateau prior to the rise of Persia.

The only one that stands out as being a personal name rather than a place name is Arphaxad, which is the person from whom Abraham descended. An important aspect highlighted in some texts that it is from the name Shem, that we get the term Semitic and anti-Semitic. If we concentrate on Decedents of Japeth, these names are more obvious as they are all names given to places much farther away from the Land of Israel. Javan is usually associated with the Greeks and Madai with the Medes.

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