An Invitation to Peace

In the end, “the victory of the Romans” proclaimed by God in the
Qur’an miraculously came true before ten years of the revelation of
the verses above – that is, within the 3-9 years time frame. The
Quraysh leader, Ubayy, had since been killed and so his relatives paid
Abu Bakr the debt of one hundred camels for winning the bet.
These verses also make a very significant geographical statement that
could not have been known by anyone at that time: “The Roman
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Empire has been defeated in the lowest land…” The Byzantines and
the Persians actually fought at the Dead Sea basin. At 399 metres
below sea level, the Dead Sea is the “lowest” place on the earth’s
surface, something we know now but certainly didn’t fourteen
hundred years ago.
The Manifest Victory
In the sixth year after the Prophet and believers had settled in
Madinah, the Prophet had a dream one night that they were at
Makkah performing pilgrimage, which is the site of the Ka’bah built by
Abraham and Ishmael for the worship of God and which, at that time,
was the chief stronghold of Islam’s most bitter enemies, the Pagan
Arabs. The dreams of messengers are not just imagination but
inspiration from God, and so this delighted the believers, particularly
those who had emigrated from Makkah like the Prophet. In March of
628, the Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, set out to perform
pilgrimage at Makkah with a party of about fifteen hundred men,
unarmed and in pilgrim dress. Informed of the coming of God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, the Quraysh armed
themselves and the neighbouring tribes. They were determined not to
allow the Muslims to enter Makkah. When the Muslims reached
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Qur’an 30:2-3. The Arabic word, adna, can mean both closest and lowest. While most translators
have chosen the former meaning, the latter would now seem more appropriate in view of the now
known facts regarding the region of the battles.
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An Invitation to Peace