The Relationship between Evil and the Kingdom in the Qur'an and the Testaments

The divine religions believe that the cosmos of the ‘Malakut’ is the truth and the interior of the cosmos of the ‘Molk’, and the evil in the ‘Molk’ cosmos is not unrelated to the ‘Malakut’ cosmos. Hence, there are challenges about the cause of the presence of evil in the ‘Malakut cosmos’ and its quality. The first challenge is the contradiction of evil with the Lordship of God in the ‘Malakut cosmos’ and with the position of knowledge and science of God. The second challenge is Angels as a group of heavenly creatures who are involved in guiding man. What do they have about the evil and what effects do they have on human salvation and perfection? This research intends to study the origin of evil in the ‘Malakut cosmos’ and its consequences based on the sources of the Qur'an, authentic interpretations and narrations, and the sources of the Old and New Testaments and their interpretations, and to examine the commonalities and differences in the origin of evil.The results of this research showed that evil in the Qur'an has no way to the region of the Throne and the position of divine knowledge and angels; rather, it is only in the lower stage of the ‘Malakut cosmos’ along with the presence of jinns. Their chief; the devil, has only the power to tempt man; but in the Old and New Testaments, wickedness occurs at the level of angels because of deliberate rebellion against the Lord. So, the part of the Malakut where the angels are present is mixed with evil, which is not fit with the divine Lordship and the position of the knowledge of God. However, numerous studies have been written about the Throne and Evil so far. Among them, we can mention the article ‘a comparison of Adam's generation to Noah and the evil of man in the journey of Genesis’ (Homaei, 2005) and ‘a comparative study of the Throne in Jewish and Islamic mysticism’ (Miralaei et al., 2013). However, in none of these works has the ‘Malakut cosmos’ been considered educationally and they have not studied evil in the ‘Malakut cosmos’ and its effects on the ‘Molk’.According to the Qur'an, evil cannot reach the highest level of the ‘Malakut’ and the level of angels; because the Divine Throne is the place of absolute Lordship and the place of knowledge of God. Divine saints and angels are the executors of God's plans in the universe. Prophets and Imams, as a group of bearers of the Divine Throne, are aware of all events with their dominion over the ‘Malakut’, and with the knowledge of the presence of science (Hozuri) (A'raf: 54) and the guardianship that they have in the population of divine servants, they are in charge of guiding the people. They take evolutionary possession of the universe. And with the guardianship of the divine servants in the population, they are in charge of guiding the people and intervening in the evolution of the universe. They also have the characteristic of infallibility due to the mission of guiding creatures. Hence, the nature of divine knowledge and infallibility are not commensurate with evil. It is worth mentioning that another group of unseen beings, who intend to obtain unseen news from the Throne ‘Malakut’, are jinns. According to narrative sources, Satan was expelled from the ‘Malakut’ after the birth of the Prophet (PBUH). Therefore, he will never be able to enter the kingdom. According to his promise, “I swear by your honor that I will deceive them all” (Al-Hijr: 39) with the temptation of human beings and through his demonic powers, he commits evil in the universe.Therefore, the field of evil is the material world (the lower realm) and the creation of evil by the infidel jinns is done under the rule of Satan, and the divine world as the throne (Molk) of God is free from evil. In fact, the Qur'an attributes evil to demons from the jinn, who are not among the agents of existence and are mere beings who intend to enter the ‘ Malakut’ and access the unseen news. But God by the heavenly guards (al-Safat: 10) prevents them from penetrating the Malakut of heaven and the world of the Throne.Considering that in the Old Testament, the Throne ('Arsh) means government and kingdom, domination, and authority, and in the Old and New Testaments, the ‘Malakut’ is used in the sense of government; hence, the throne ('Arsh) and the ‘Malakut’ can be placed next to each other.The terms ‘Malakut’ of God and ‘Malakut’ of heaven are widely used in the New Testament (14 times in the Gospel of Mark, 39 times in the Gospel of Luke, and 32 times in the Gospel of Matthew). One of the concepts that is closely related to the Malakut is the Throne (A'rsh), which from the perspective of the Old and New Testaments is the center of the issuance of divine commands (1 King, 8:30; Daniel, 2:28; Matthew, 5:45). The New Testament speaks on the one hand of the Throne of God, the Throne of the Lamb and the Throne of God's Companions, and on the other hand, refers to the Throne of God's enemies and opponents, that is, the devil and the beast. In fact, from the point of view of the Old and New Testaments, the Divine Throne is the place where the affairs of the universe rule there, and the lamb, the conquerors, the 24 spiritual leaders and the judges are the executors of the Lord's plans. On the other hand, Satan, among the divine opponents, with his subordinates, in opposition to the divine throne, makes the universe the center of his evil deeds and claims kingship and sovereignty. Eventually, at the end of history, his wicked rule will be broken by Christ.The Old and New Testaments believe that due to the presence of evil angels led by Satan in the Malakut and deliberate rebellion against God, with the motive of seeking supremacy over him and taking the place of God, there is also evil in the supreme Malakut. In fact, in the Divine Throne where the Lamb and 24 spiritual leaders and judges are present, because of their infallibility, no evil will occur on their part in the Malakut (throne). Rather, due to the presence of evil angels in the Malakut, evil has occurred in the supreme Malakut by this group of angels because of their deliberate rebellion against God, and from there, it has spread to the realm of the kingdom. In other words, the Old and New Testaments believe that the origin of the evils in the world is the Throne (Malakut). Due to the presence of evil angels in the Malakut and as a result of their sin and fall, evil has found its way to it.