Multiple scholars of history and akhbār reported that Prophet Armiya was a prophet from the Prophets of Banī Isrāʾīl. Some identified him with ʿUzayr, and others with al-Khiḍr. The correct view stated is that he is neither of the two.
- Ibn ʿAsākir رحمه الله: Armiyā ibn Ḥulqiyā is from the tribe of Lāwī ibn Yaʿqūb; from the Prophets of Banī Isrāʾīl.
- Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله, al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah 2/360: the report that he is al-Khiḍr, narrated by al-Ḍaḥḥāk from Ibn ʿAbbās, is gharīb and not authentic.
The Mission Of Prophet Armiya: Warning, Rejection, And Imprisonment
Historians and scholars of nations narrate that Allah revealed to Prophet Armiya when sins became widespread among Banī Isrāʾīl, serious offences multiplied, and prophets were killed. He was commanded to admonish them, remind them of Allah’s favours, enumerate their transgressions, and warn them of their Lord’s might with a long, eloquent admonition.
When Prophet Armiya conveyed this message and they heard the threats and punishment it contained, they disobeyed, denied, and accused him, saying he lied and fabricated against Allah. They argued that Allah would never abandon His land, His houses of worship, His Book, worship, and tawḥīd, then they seized him, shackled him, and imprisoned him.
Nebuchadnezzar’s Assault And The Sacking Of Bayt Al-Maqdis
At that point, Allah sent Bukht Nassar, who advanced with his armies, besieged them, and, as in the verse, “they ravaged the homes”. When the siege prolonged, they surrendered to his judgment. The gates were opened, alleyways penetrated, and he ruled with the tyranny of jāhiliyyah and the might of oppressors: he killed one-third, enslaved one-third, left the infirm and elderly, trampled them with horses, destroyed Bayt al-Maqdis, drove away the children, displayed the women in markets constrained, killed the fighters, ruined fortresses, demolished mosques, and burned the Torah.
According to Isḥāq ibn Bishr from Wahb ibn Munabbih, it was said to Nebuchadnezzar that the people had a man who warned them precisely of what befell them and informed them of Nebuchadnezzar’s killing, enslavement, demolition of mosques, and burning of churches. They belied him, accused him, beat him, bound him, and jailed him. Nebuchadnezzar ordered that Armiyā be brought out of prison, questioned him, then said: Evil indeed are a people who deny their prophet and their Lord’s message. He offered Armiyā safety and companionship. Armiyā replied that he had always been under Allah’s protection and that if Banī Isrāʾīl had remained in Allah’s protection, Nebuchadnezzar would have had no power over them. Hearing this, Nebuchadnezzar left him, and Armiyā remained in Īliyāʾ. The narration is described as gharīb, containing admonitions and notable points, and shows linguistic strangeness due to Arabisation.
Dispatch To Fight In Al-Shām And The Episode Of The Boiling Blood
Hishām ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Sāʾib al-Kalbī said: Bukht-Nassar was the commander over lands from al-Ahwāz to al-Rūm for the Persian king, Hurasb. He built Balkh, fought the Turks, pursued them into narrow places, and sent Bukht Nassar to fight Banī Isrāʾīl in al-Shām. Another report says Bihman, king of Persia after Bistasb ibn Hurasb, sent him due to Banī Isrāʾīl’s aggression against his envoys.
From Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib: when Nebuchadnezzar reached Damascus, he found blood boiling upon refuse heaps. They told him they had found it like that from their forefathers. He then killed seventy thousand Muslims and others until it settled. This isnād to Saʿīd is ṣaḥīḥ. Ibn ʿAsākir’s earlier words indicate that some linked it to the blood of Yaḥyā ibn Zakariyyā, but that is not correct because Yaḥyā lived after Nebuchadnezzar by a period. The apparent view is that it was the blood of a previous prophet, a righteous person, or whoever Allah willed.
See also: Prophet Shamwil (Samuel) in Islamic History
The Dispersion Of Banī Isrāʾīl And Daniel Among The Captives
Hishām al-Kalbī also narrates: Nebuchadnezzar came to Bayt al-Maqdis and made terms with its king from the descendants of Dāwūd, who shielded him from Banī Isrāʾīl. Nebuchadnezzar took hostages and withdrew. When he reached Ṭabariyyah, he learned that Banī Isrāʾīl had revolted against their king and killed him for making peace. He executed the hostages, returned, took the city by force, killed the fighters, and enslaved the children. He found Armiyā in prison, released him, and praised him while condemning the people for disobeying Allah’s messenger.
The weak among Banī Isrāʾīl gathered to Prophet Armiya, confessed wrongdoing, and sought that he pray for their repentance to be accepted. Revelation came to Armiyā that this would not be granted unless they remained with him in the ruined town. They refused, saying the town was destroyed and under Allah’s anger. From that time, Banī Isrāʾīl dispersed in many lands: some to al-Ḥijāz, some to Yathrib, some to Wādī al-Qurā, and some to Egypt. Nebuchadnezzar wrote to Egypt’s king asking for those who fled there; he refused, so Nebuchadnezzar marched, fought him, defeated him, enslaved their offspring, then advanced toward the Maghrib and returned with many captives from the Maghrib, Egypt, Bayt al-Maqdis, Palestine, and al-Urdunn. Among the captives was Danyāl. The apparent view stated is that he was Danyāl ibn Ḥizqīl the younger, not the elder, as mentioned by Wahb ibn Munabbih. Allah knows best.
A Foundational Creed Note About Reports On Prophets
Belief in Allah’s prophets and messengers عليهم السلام is a pillar of īmān. Faith is not complete without believing in all of Allah’s messengers.
- Allah says:
“The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and so have the believers. All have believed in Allah, His angels, His books, and His messengers. We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” Al-Baqarah 2:285
“And We sent messengers about whom We have told you before, and messengers about whom We have not told you.” Al-Nisāʾ 4:164
The prophets are Allah’s chosen among creation, sent to teach and deliver the call, and they possess essential qualities: truthfulness, trustworthiness, intelligence, and conveyance. They also embody exalted moral and intellectual traits such as courage, patience, insight, and excellence, and they are protected from sins. One must not heed groups that attribute “true sins by intention” to prophets.
Second: the Qurʾān and authentic Sunnah do not mention the name Prophet Armiya or affirm his prophethood. His mention comes via historians. Such a report does not bind us to affirm or deny it absolutely, because it may be from the fabrications of Ahl al-Kitāb, yet it may also be true. The methodological stance is tawqīf: we pause without categorical confirmation or rejection.
Al-Bukhārī 4485 narrates from Abū Hurayrah رضي الله عنه: the People of the Book used to read the Torah in Hebrew and interpret it in Arabic for Muslims. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Do not believe the People of the Book nor deny them. Say: We believe in Allah and what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Ibrāhīm, Ismāʿīl, Isḥāq, Yaʿqūb, and the Tribes, and what was given to Mūsā and ʿĪsā and what was given to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims to Him.” Al-Baqarah 2:136.
Ibn Abī Ḥātim relates the wording that ends with Al-ʿAnkabūt 29:46: “Say: We believe in what has been revealed to us and revealed to you; our God and your God is One, and to Him we submit.
Ibn Ḥajar said in Fatḥ al-Bārī: “Do not believe the People of the Book nor deny them” means when what they report is possible in the first place, so that you do not end up belittling a truth by denying it, or affirming a falsehood by believing it, and thus fall into hardship. The prohibition does not apply when our Sharīʿah contradicts their report nor when our Sharīʿah corroborates it. Al-Shāfiʿī رحمه الله highlighted this point.
Resources
Ibn Kathir, Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, Vol. 2, p. 360
Ibn ʿAsākir, Tārīkh Dimashq (Biography of Armiyā ibn Ḥulqiyā)
Wahb ibn Munabbih, narrations reported in Isḥāq ibn Bishr’s Kitāb al-Mubtadaʾ
Hishām ibn al-Kalbī, Akhbār al-Umam wa al-Mulūk
Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib, narration on Nebuchadnezzar and the boiling blood
Al-Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Ḥadīth no. 4485 (on Ahl al-Kitāb reports)
Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī, Fatḥ al-Bārī (commentary on the above ḥadīth)
Al-Shāfiʿī, Al-Risālah — methodology on dealing with Israelite reports
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