Stories of the Prophets

by Ibn Kathir, Rashid Ahmad Azami (Translator)

In this book, the stories of the prophets have been compiled from 'Al-Bidayah wan-Nihayah' (The Beginning and the End) which is a great work of the famous Muslim exegete and historian Ibn Kathir and has a prominent place in the Islamic literature. The stories of the prophets and all the events in their lives have been supported by the Qur'anic Verses and the Sunnah (traditions) of the Prophet (S). Wherever it was necessary, other sources have also been reported for the sake of historical accounts, but on such places a comparative study has been made to prove the authenticity of the sources. Ibn Kathir has reproduced the views and interpretations of all the great exegete's of the Qur'an of his time. The systemic narratives of the Stories of the Prophets have been written in chronological order which renders a historical style to the book.

Genres: Islam, Religion, History

576 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2003

About the author

ابن كثير
Abu Al-Fida' Isma'il Ibn Kathir Al-Dimashqi

Reviews

[Yara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really wonderful and easy to read/follow introduction and explanation of the stories of the different prophets in Islam (peace be upon them all). It doesn’t include Prophet Muhammad SAW, which I wish it did include a little bit at least, but I do understand why, because our beloved unlettered Prophet probably requires a whole book dedicate to his story! Also reading this really helped me understand the Quran better and understand hadiths and the sunnah better as well, alhamdullilah.

[Asma Siari · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book alhamdullilah and I would recommend it to anyone wanting to strengthen their understanding of the lives of the prophets (AS). Sources are well sited and the author, may Allah reward him, gives a good overview of any differing opinions when relevant.
If you’re anything like me, you may find yourself not loving the start of the book; I had to power through the story of Adam (AS) as I found that it was repetitive. Once I got through that one though, it was only up from there and actually became a super enjoyable read.

[Jawaad Saleem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alhamdulillah, I have completed reading this amazing book covering all of the stories of the prophets all the way up to ‘Isa (Jesus) (May peace be upon him).

A lot of hard work has been put in the research of the book to ensure authentic and most probable historical events are recorded. The tafsir (explanation) of the Qur’an ayahs was really good and extremely clarifying.

Unfortunately, that same effort was not made for the english translation of the book where there were quite a few spelling errors and even incorrect referencing of Qur’an ayahs! Alhamdulillah I had checked and confirmed that those ayah were in fact correct but the referencing was wrong. Those who might not double check the correct ayah number may feel it to be fabricated! Please do Ibn Kathir justice by handling his works in translation properly.

Moreover, I do feel certain stories were not comprehensively covered the way they could have been i.e. The story of ‘Isa (Jesus) (May peace be upon him) focused more on the inter-religious controversies rather than a timeline historical study of his life.

I would have liked to understand more about the zabur and what practices it taught. I would have liked a discussion on Dhul-Qarnain and who in fact he was.

and the most of the other prophets in the later chapters weren’t explained too well to form a timeline in my mind on when they came.

However, above all else, reading this gives so much context towards reading the Qur’an because you get an inkling of understanding behind a lot of ayahs which otherwise many would have contextualised without historical knowledge. It’s like when you read a prequel and you’re like aaaahh so that’s why such and such is like so and so…

I would definitely recommend adding this book as a definite must read in exploring and understanding Islam and the Qur’an. May Allah allow us to implement the good and stay away from the bad.

[Khairun Atika · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Writing a story is difficult enough, but writing it eloquently and skilfully is hard to come by. Furthermore, writing it again and again, each time suited to its particular context and with a different purpose and an unmatched flavour if literary brilliance is unheard of; this is what the Quran achieves." - Stories of the Prophets: A Rendering from Ibn Kathir, translated by Shoaib Shah

I have always found it important to own a collection of stories of the prophets, be it that of the Ulul Azmi or the 25 Rasul we grew up learning about. This collection of the rich, lesson-filled lives of the prophets is definitely one you need to have amongst your own book collection.

The chapters are divided into the stories of the different prophets, and are further segmented into the significant lessons and miracles that were faced and experienced by the prophets. Constantly supported by verses of the Quran and the hadith, it is an easy read filled with many insightful narratives. Detailed, concise and succinct, this was a collection of stories that I definitely count as the perfect read.

It is accessible and definitely filled with a captivating yet clear narrative on the different remarkable stories of the prophets. Each story, each chapter, lays a foundation to the establishment and completion of our religion, with the anticipation of the seerah of our beloved Prophet s.a.w ever so present. I find this a truly wonderful book that needs no introduction or review from me, but I highly urge you to pick this up and bask in the beauty of the stories of the prophets.

[Hamza Malik · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book by Ibn Kathir is the only book needed on stories of the Prophets. For each Prophet it goes in order from, so it brings verses from the Quran first, then Ibn Kathir explains those verses on the Prophet, going in order from the beginning of their life, to the end. Filled with verses from the Quran, the opinions of other Islamic historians, Hadith, just to get the complete story of the Prophet from an Islamic perspective.

But Ibn Kathir also gets the stories for the Prophet from biblical texts (obviously not the haram parts, which negate Islamic beliefs on Prophets, as the people of the book were quite vile and vulgar on portraying Prophets as they believed some Prophets as being alcoholics or fornicators and even worse), filling in gaps which the Islamic texts don’t mention. Remember that these parts from the people of the book aren’t hujjah, or the complete verdict, but it’s just a rough idea, satisfying the reader and making the story complete as much as possible.

But overall, this book is somewhat obligatory to read and works like it, if you want to have a better understanding of Tafsir. You cannot read tafsir in complete comprehension if you don’t know the stories of Prophets, especially Prophet Moses, as he’s mentioned the most in the Quran.

[lovelyi · Rating 4 out of 5]

a long and educational read الحمد لله. some typos and grammer errors here and there, and some pages didn't have clear text shown due to printing errors but majority of it was well printed and a well read. I wish the pages were a bit thicker, they are way too thin.

i loved so many stories from this! my book has been filled with lots of underlining and highlights because there is so much fascinating information!! it was interesting to read what the people of the book viewed in regards to the prophets compared to the Islamic belief. عليهم السلام

a great historical read. only makes sense for me to continue the story of the prophets now with Muhammad ﷺ
because it doesn't include it.
إن شاء الله

[Emily Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very thorough book, I admit there were times where I struggled to get through this book may Allah reward me for my efforts Inshallah but I persevered this Ramadan to finish it Alhamdulillah. This book is very well cited, all Quran text and hadiths are quoted and reference on each page and I loved learning about all the context. It is very information heavy so I think I’ll have to do a reread at some point maybe as im reading Quran and a prophet comes up that I am lacking in knowledge. Also has the Arabic text above each reference too Subhanallah

[Hafsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will definitely come back to this again and again. I need to get my hands on all of Ibn Kathirs works. It’s a great way to understand the context of verses of the Quran and bring more meaning to each word. It does combine some Israelite stories but it acknowledges most of those that are sourced from them. But it was helpful as it combined all the prophets recorded in all Holy Books and gives a linear chronological timeline as best as possible as obviously not all of them are known which I’ve always wanted.

[Kabir Ansari]

being a muslim myself I learnt really many things from this book about the prophets, their lifestyles, the miracles they performed, and their way of swaying their people. and books takes such a deep approach to it.

[Faiqa Mansab · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really well researched or in sequence. Maybe a poor translation.

[Mohamed Glayini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learnt so much Alhamdulilah!

[Sharmin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The books was an amazing read, would highly recommend.

[J.A. H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wat een geweldig boek Alhamdullilah! Moge Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala imam Imâduddin Abul-Fida Isma’îl ibn Kathir Ad-Dimashqi en Rashad Ahmad Azami belonen hiervoor.

[Jamil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great historical record of the prophets considering the three Abrahamic traditions. May get a little uninteresting at some points.