batch.motif.islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg-l20985-l21124
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg-l20985-l21124
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
passage_locator:
label: PUBLIC SERVICES, / AND EMINENT LITERARY ATTAINMENTS, / THE TRANSLATOR. /
PREFACE; lines 20985-21124
start: '20985'
end: '21124'
translation: The Koran (Al-Qur'an), Rodwell translation
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage warns those who turn back after guidance, describes Satanic
deception, death by angels, testing of believers, invalidation of works, refusal
of forgiveness to those dying in unbelief, and the call to expend for God's cause.
It then opens Sura III with statements about the Book confirming earlier revelations,
divine knowledge and formation in the womb, clear and figurative signs, prayer
for steadfastness, gathering on the promised day, punishment of unbelievers, Pharaoh
as precedent, a battle sign, and contrast between worldly pleasures and gardens
with flowing rivers for the God-fearing.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Those who return to error after guidance are said to be beguiled by Satan
and filled with his suggestions.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Angels are described as causing some people to die while smiting them on the
face and back.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: God is said to know hidden reservations, deeds, malice, and what is in heaven
and earth.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:7
- id: obs:4
text: Believers are told that they will be tested until the valiant and steadfast
are known, and that reports of conduct will be tested.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: Those who disbelieve, turn others from God's way, or die in unbelief are described
as having their works brought to nothing or not being forgiven.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: The present life is characterized as play and pastime, while belief and fear
of God are associated with rewards.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: The audience is called to expend for the cause of God; niggardliness is described
as harming only the niggardly person.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:8
text: 'The opening of Sura III states that God sent down the Book confirming previous
revelations: the Law and the Evangel.'
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:9
text: God is described as forming people in their mothers' wombs.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:10
text: The Book is described as containing perspicuous signs and figurative signs;
those inclined to error follow the figurative signs seeking discord and interpretation,
while the stable in knowledge affirm belief.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:11
text: A prayer asks that hearts not go astray after guidance and asks for mercy.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:12
text: A prayer affirms a coming day when God will gather mankind together.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:13
text: Unbelievers are said to become fuel for the fire, and a later prayer asks
protection from the torment of the fire.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:17
- id: obs:14
text: The people of Pharaoh and earlier peoples are cited as treating divine signs
as falsehoods and being seized in their sins.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: obs:15
text: 'A battle between two hosts is described as a sign: one host fought in God''s
cause, the other was infidel, and God aided whom He would.'
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: obs:16
text: Worldly pleasures are listed as women, children, treasures of gold and silver,
marked horses, flocks, and cornfields.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: obs:17
text: Better things for those who fear God are described as gardens with rivers
flowing beneath pavilions, lasting abode, pure wives, and acceptance with God.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: God
description: The divine speaker or referent who knows secrets and deeds, tests believers,
sends down revelation, forms people in wombs, judges, rewards, and punishes.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:11
- ev:12
- ev:16
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Satan
description: A deceiving figure who beguiles those who return to error and fills
them with suggestions.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Angels
description: Agents who cause the condemned to die and smite them on face and back.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Believers
description: Those addressed to obey God and the Apostle, remain steadfast, fear
God, and expend for God's cause.
role_refs:
- role:7
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Those who return to error / unbelievers / diseased hearts
description: People described as rejecting or turning from guidance, concealing
malice, perverting others from God's way, and dying in unbelief.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:12
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: The Apostle
description: The messenger whom believers are told to obey, and from whom some are
said to separate after guidance has been shown.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Men stable in knowledge
description: People who say they believe in the Book and that it is all from their
Lord.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: People of Pharaoh
description: A past people cited as treating divine signs as falsehoods and being
seized by God in their sins.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Two hosts
description: Two battle groups, one fighting in God's cause and the other described
as infidel.
role_refs:
- role:13
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Those who fear God
description: People promised gardens, flowing rivers, pure wives, and acceptance
with God.
role_refs:
- role:14
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
roles:
- id: role:1
label: omniscient deity
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God is said to know secret reservations, deeds, and everything in earth or
heaven.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:8
- id: role:2
label: tester and rewarder
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God tests the believers and gives rewards or recompense for works.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: role:3
label: revealer of scripture
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God is said to have sent down the Book, the Law, the Evangel, and the Illumination.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: role:4
label: judge and punisher
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: God brings works to nothing, refuses forgiveness to those dying in unbelief,
gathers mankind, and punishes unbelievers.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:11
- ev:12
- ev:13
- id: role:5
label: deceiver
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Satan beguiles those returning to error and fills them with suggestions.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:6
label: death agents
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The angels cause the condemned to die and smite them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:7
label: tested community
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The believers are told they will be tested until the valiant and steadfast
are known.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:8
label: called contributors
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: They are called to expend for the cause of God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:9
label: condemned rejecters
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: They return to error, follow what angers God, reject guidance, pervert others,
or die in unbelief.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:10
label: messenger to be obeyed
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Believers are commanded to obey God and the Apostle.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:11
label: faithful interpreters
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: They affirm belief in the Book rather than seeking discord through figurative
signs.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: role:12
label: punished precedent
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The people of Pharaoh are given as an example of people seized in their sins
after rejecting signs.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: role:13
label: opposed battle hosts
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The passage contrasts a host fighting in God's cause with an infidel host.
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: role:14
label: promised recipients
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: Those who fear God are promised gardens, rivers, pure wives, and divine acceptance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: fire of punishment
literal_form: fire
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:17
- id: sym:2
label: flowing rivers in gardens
literal_form: rivers beneath pavilions in gardens
associated_figures:
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
- id: sym:3
label: the Book
literal_form: revealed Book with perspicuous and figurative signs
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:9
- id: sym:4
label: mothers' wombs
literal_form: mothers' wombs
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:5
label: worldly treasures and pleasures
literal_form: women, children, gold and silver, horses, flocks, and cornfields
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: sym:6
label: two hosts as sign
literal_form: meeting of two battle hosts
associated_figures:
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Turning back after guidance
summary: People who return to error after guidance are deceived by Satan, conceal
reservations, and are threatened with exposure and punishment.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: scene:2
label: Death by angelic smiting
summary: Angels cause the condemned to die while smiting their faces and backs because
they followed what angered God.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:5
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Testing of the believers
summary: The community is told it will be tested until the valiant and steadfast
are distinguished, and believers are commanded not to make their works vain.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:6
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:4
label: Expenditure and recompense
summary: Present life is described as play and pastime; believers are called to
expend for God's cause, with reward for belief and loss for niggardliness.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: scene:5
label: Revelation and interpretation
summary: God sends down the Book confirming earlier revelations; the Book includes
clear and figurative signs, and the stable in knowledge affirm faith in it.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:9
- id: scene:6
label: Prayer for steadfast hearts and gathering day
summary: The speakers pray that their hearts not go astray after guidance and affirm
that God will gather mankind on a promised day.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: scene:7
label: Punishment of unbelievers and precedent of Pharaoh
summary: Unbelievers are threatened with fire and defeat, and the people of Pharaoh
are cited as an earlier group punished for rejecting signs.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:5
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- id: scene:8
label: Battle sign of two hosts
summary: A battle between a host fighting in God's cause and an infidel host is
presented as a sign and lesson; God aids whom He wills.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: scene:9
label: Worldly pleasures contrasted with promised gardens
summary: The passage lists worldly objects of desire and contrasts them with gardens,
rivers, pure wives, and acceptance with God for those who fear Him.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- ev:16
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: divine judgment of rejecters
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: The passage repeatedly states that God nullifies the works of rejecters,
withholds forgiveness from those dying in unbelief, gathers mankind, punishes
false-deniers, and consigns unbelievers to fire.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:11
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:17
confidence: high
cautions: This is an explicit doctrinal pattern in the passage, not a reconstructed
comparative claim.
- id: motif:2
label: trial distinguishing the steadfast
taxonomy_refs:
- initiation
basis: The community is told it will be tested until the valiant and steadfast are
known, making testing a means of revealing character.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The available taxonomy does not include a direct 'testing' motif; 'initiation'
is a broader analogue and should be reviewed.
- id: motif:3
label: revealed wisdom and guarded interpretation
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The Book is described as containing clear and figurative signs; errant hearts
pursue discordant interpretation, while the stable in knowledge affirm belief.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage concerns revelation and interpretation rather than wisdom
as a narrative figure or quest.
- id: motif:4
label: afterlife reward garden with flowing rivers
taxonomy_refs:
- afterlife_journey_map
basis: Those who fear God are promised gardens with rivers beneath pavilions, enduring
abode, pure wives, and acceptance with God.
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage depicts an afterlife reward setting but does not narrate a
journey through it.
- id: motif:5
label: infernal fire punishment
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: Unbelievers are described as fuel for the fire, and believers pray to be
kept from the torment of the fire.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:17
confidence: high
cautions: Fire is literal-symbolic in the passage; no further cosmography is supplied
here.
- id: motif:6
label: sacred giving and recompense
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: The audience is called to expend for God's cause, with God described as rich
and humans poor, and with recompense promised for works.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: This is an ethical-exhortative exchange pattern; the passage does not
describe a ritual sacrifice.
- id: motif:7
label: replacement of an unfaithful people
taxonomy_refs:
- covenant
basis: The passage warns that if the addressed people turn back, God will change
them for another people unlike them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:18
confidence: medium
cautions: The covenantal framing is inferred from the warning of replacement and
should be reviewed.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The translator's note explicitly links the warning that God may replace a
turning-back people with Matthew xxi.43.
claim_level: linguistic_similarity
target: Matthew xxi.43; replacement of one people by another
evidence_refs:
- ev:18
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage provides only a footnote cross-reference, not an argument
for historical contact or shared origin.
- id: claim:2
claim: The passage presents the Book as confirming the Law and the Evangel, supporting
a cautious comparison among revealed-scripture traditions within an Abrahamic
textual frame.
claim_level: same_function
target: The Law and the Evangel as earlier guidance texts
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: This is an internal theological relationship stated in the passage;
it should not by itself be taken as a historical transmission claim.
- id: claim:3
claim: The people of Pharaoh are used as a precedent for divine punishment of those
who reject signs, aligning the present warning with an earlier punitive exemplum
named in the passage.
claim_level: same_motif
target: People of Pharaoh as punished sign-rejecters
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The passage names the precedent but does not recount the full Pharaoh
narrative.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 20985-20992
quote_or_summary: Those who return to error after guidance are beguiled by Satan;
God knows the secret reservations of those who partly comply with opponents of
what God sent down.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:2
type: quote
locator: lines 20993-20994
quote_or_summary: '"When the angels, in causing them to die, shall smite them on
the face and back!"'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 20995-21003
quote_or_summary: They follow what angers God, abhor what pleases Him, have diseased
hearts and malice, and may be known by tokens and strange words; God knows deeds.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:4
type: quote
locator: lines 21005-21006
quote_or_summary: '"And we will surely test you, until we know the valiant and the
steadfast among you"; reports of conduct will also be tested.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation with summary.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 21008-21015
quote_or_summary: Those who disbelieve, turn others from God's way, or separate
from the Apostle after guidance cannot injure God, but their works are brought
to nought; believers are told to obey God and the Apostle; those dying in unbelief
will not be forgiven.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 21017-21031
quote_or_summary: Believers are told not to be fainthearted; present life is play
and pastime; if they believe and fear God they will receive rewards; they are
called to expend for God's cause, while niggardliness harms only the niggardly
because God is rich and humans poor.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 21060-21065
quote_or_summary: God sends down the Book in truth, confirming what came before
it; the Law and Evangel were sent earlier as guidance, and the Illumination is
now sent down.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:8
type: quote
locator: lines 21069-21071
quote_or_summary: '"God! nought that is in Earth or that is in Heaven, is hidden
unto Him. He it is who formeth you in your mothers'' wombs."'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 21074-21082
quote_or_summary: The Book contains perspicuous signs that are its basis and other
figurative signs; errant hearts follow the figures seeking discord and interpretation,
while the stable in knowledge say they believe it is all from their Lord.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:10
type: quote
locator: lines 21084-21086
quote_or_summary: '"O our Lord! suffer not our hearts to go astray after that thou
hast once guided us" and grant mercy.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 21088-21090
quote_or_summary: A prayer says God will surely gather mankind together on the day
whose coming is not in doubt, and that God will not fail the promise.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:12
type: quote
locator: lines 21092-21093
quote_or_summary: '"As for the infidels, their wealth, and their children, shall
avail them nothing against God. They shall be fuel for the fire."'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: lines 21095-21097
quote_or_summary: The people of Pharaoh and earlier peoples treated divine signs
as falsehoods, so God seized them in their sins; God is severe in punishing.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:14
type: summary
locator: lines 21102-21107
quote_or_summary: 'A sign is identified in the meeting of two hosts: one fought
in God''s cause and the other was infidel; the infidels saw the believers as twice
their number, and God aided whom He would.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:15
type: summary
locator: lines 21109-21112
quote_or_summary: 'Worldly pleasures are listed: women, children, treasures of gold
and silver, marked horses, flocks, and cornfields; these are called enjoyment
of this world''s life.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:16
type: summary
locator: lines 21114-21118
quote_or_summary: 'Better things are prepared for those who fear God: gardens with
rivers flowing beneath pavilions, lasting abode, pure wives, and acceptance with
God.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
- id: ev:17
type: quote
locator: lines 21121-21124
quote_or_summary: '"O our Lord! we have indeed believed; pardon us our sins, and
keep us from the torment of the fire"'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:18
type: summary
locator: lines 21029-21031 and note 8
quote_or_summary: If the addressed people turn back, God will change them for another
people unlike them; the translator's note cites Matt. xxi. 43.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamic/project-gutenberg/koran-rodwell.md
rights_note: Public domain source; concise summary.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Literal extraction is strong for named figures and actions. Motif mapping
is clearest for divine judgment and fire; broader categories such as initiation,
wisdom, sacred exchange, and covenant need human review.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-29'
notes: |-
Only the supplied passage and metadata were used. No external taxonomy IDs beyond the provided lists were introduced.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamic-koran-rodwell-gutenberg__l20985-l21124
passage_sha256=ce32f0e53adeabecfe8f34b17cc503a8e39227f08b164761be4cb991b99193a9