The stories of the prophets - according to Ibn Kathir:

This book is taken from the phenomenal work "Al-Bidâya wa An-nihâya" (The beginning and the end). It relates the lives of the Prophets of God and their efforts to rekindle the spark of faith in the hearts of men and bring them back to the way of God. He draws his material mainly from the Koran and the prophetic tradition and quotes the opinions of scholars among the Companions and the generations who followed them as well as snippets of the writings of the People of the Book.
We have tried as much as possible to ignore the weak accounts and to reference the hadîth reported by Ibn Kathîr. The works of certain contemporary scholars such as Al-Albânî and Ahmad Shâkir have been of great help to us in this undertaking.
God elected the best among His servants and sent them to be models for men in all areas of life, both in their relationship with God and in their relationship with creatures. He provided each of them with the necessary tools to fulfill his mission, thus taking into account the characteristics of their respective peoples and those of the times in which they lived.
The Envoys had the mission of reminding men of the pre-eternal pact concluded between God and His servants, to worship only Him without associating anything with Him. Adoration which must be translated at every moment of human experience, any act however small may be transformed thanks to the intention and the respect of the norms into an act of adoration.
Today more than ever at a time when excessive materialism gnaws at the soul of man, a return to the essential is essential: Return to God, reminder of the last life, respect and practice of the divine norms revealed to Muhammad last Prophet of God. For that, nothing like the book "the stories of the Prophets" which contains the quintessence of the human experience.
This edition of "Histories of the Prophets" has been enlarged; we have included the book of the beginning of the creation, and chapters which did not appear in the previous editions. We hope that this work will be well received by our dear readers and ask them to be indulgent towards us if it presents some imperfection.

Topics covered in this book:

• God is the Creator of everything
• The Creation of the Throne and Seat
• The Seat (Kursi)
• The creation of the heavens, the earth and what is in between
• The creation of the seven lands
• The seas and the rivers
• The description of all creatures: On land and in the seas
• The creation of the heavens and the signs they contain
• The creation of Angels and their characteristics
• Categories of Angels
• Who are more deserving: Angels or humans?
• The Creation of the Jinns and the Story of Satan
• The Creation of Adam
• The Angels want to know the wisdom of Adam's creation
• Satan is jealous of Adam
• The Angels Who Bowed Down Before Adam
• satan lived in heaven
• The creation of Eve
• What tree is it?
• Where is the Paradise where Adam lived?
• Satan Suggests Adam and Eve Disobey God
• Adam and Eve's clothes
• Adam and Eve regret their act and ask for forgiveness from God
• Adam and Eve leave Paradise
• Adam's Repentance
• The discussion between Adam and Moses
• Reminder of the Hadith relating to the creation of Adam
• The original pact
• The story of the sons of Adam: Cain (Qâbîl) and Abel (Hâbîl)
• Adam's death and his recommendations to his son Seth
• Idris (Enoch)
• The story of Noah (Nûh
• The Story of Noah in the Quran
• Adam's offspring deviate and worship idols
• Noah is the first Messenger to humans
• Noah despairs that his people will believe
• Noah builds the ark
• The flood
• Some facts from the life of Noah
• Noah's pilgrimage
• Noah's recommendations to his son
• Noah's burial place
• The story of Hud
• The people of 'Ad
• The History of the People of 'Ad in the Quran
• The 'Ad were the first to worship idols after the flood Hûd warns his people
• The annihilation of the 'Ad
• The story of Salih the Prophet of Thamud
• The tribe of Thamud
• The Story of Salih in the Quran
• Salih. calls his people to worship God without associating anything with Him
• The Miracle of Saleh
• The Thamud kill the camel of God
• The Destruction of Thamud
• Salih leave the lands of Thamud
• The Prophet passes by the lands of Thamud
• The story of Abraham (Ibrâhîm), the close friend of God
• His birth, genealogy and emigration
• Abraham calls his father to God
• Abraham chats with the star worshipers
• Abraham breaks the idols
• Abraham is thrown into the fire
• Reminder of the discussion between Abraham and Nimrod
• Abraham's departure for Shâm (Greater Syria), his entry into Egypt and his settlement in the Holy Land
• The tyrant king who wished harm to Abraham's wife
• Abraham returns to the Holy Land
• The birth of Ishmael
• The emigration of Abraham with his son Ishmael and his mother Hagar in the mountains of Paran (the land of Mecca) and the construction of the Ancient House
• The story of the sacrificed Ishmael (Ismâ'îl)
• The arguments which prove that Ishmael is indeed the Sacrificial
• The Birth of Isaac
• The construction of the Ancient House (al-bayt al-'atîq)
• The homage paid by God and His noble Messenger to Abraham ('isâ) the servant and intimate friend
• The description of Abraham
• Abraham's death and what was reported about his age
• The story of the people of Lot
• The people to whom Lot was sent
• The Story of Lot in the Quran
• Lot invokes God against his people
• Hosts of Lot
• Lot defends his hosts
• The people of Lot perish
• The Case of Lot's Wife
• The punishment reserved for those who imitate the people of Lot
• The story of Midian, the people of Shu'ayb
• The story of Shu'ayb in the Quran
• The people of Shu'ayb
• Shu'ayb calls his people to tawhid
• Shu'ayb warns his people against the chastisement of God
• The destruction of the people of Shu'ayb
• Shu'ayb and believers are saved
• Ishmael (Isma'il)
• Praise of Ishmael in the Quran
• Praise of Ishmael in the Sunnah
• The Children of Ishmael
• Isaac (Ishâq) son of Abraham: The noble son of the noble
• Some Elements of Jacob's Life and the story of his son Joseph
• Joseph's dream
• Joseph's brothers plot against him
• Joseph in the well
• Joseph at the Grand Steward of Egypt
• Al-'Azîz's wife tries to seduce Joseph
• The women of the city gather at Zulaykha's house
• joseph in jail
• The Dream of the King of Egypt
• Joseph is cleared
• Joseph in the king's palace
• Arrival of Joseph's brothers in Egypt
• Prophet
• Joseph (Hai") and his brother Benjamin
• "I know, coming from God, what you don't know"
• The surprise
• Joseph's tunic
• joseph reunites with his family and explains his vision
• "Make me die subject to You"
• The Story of Job (Ayyub)
• The Story of Job in the Quran
• Job's trial and his patience
• "There are servants whom God releases from the oaths they swear in His name"
• The story of Dhu Al-Kifl
• The story of Jonas (Yûnus)
• The Story of Jonah in the Quran
• The repentance of the people of Jonah
• Jonah in the Belly of the Fish
• Reminder of the merits of Jonas
• The story of Moses the interlocutor of God
• Pharaoh enslaves the children of Israel
• Moses: From the River to Pharaoh's Palace
• Moses rescues the Israelite and kills the Coptic
• Copts plot against Moses
• Moses goes to Midian
• Moses engages as a shepherd and marries
• "You have arrived here at the appointed time, O Moses"
• The Prophet Aaron
• Moses and Aaron call Pharaoh to God
• Coptic dignitaries incite Pharaoh to chastise Moses after the conversion of the magicians
• The believer who belongs to the family of Pharaoh
• Pharaoh's people are tested and then punished
• The death of Pharaoh and his soldiers
• The Children of Israel after the death of Pharaoh
• The condemnation of the Children of Israel to wander in the desert and the wonders they saw there
• Moses asks to see God
• The Children of Israel worship the calf in the absence of God's interlocutor
• The story of the cow
• Moses' encounter with Al-Khidr
• The merits of Moses, his innate qualities, his characteristics and his faithfulness
• The pilgrimage of Moses to the Ancient House
• The death of Moses
• The Prophecy of Joshua son of Nun and his conduct of the affairs of the Children of Israel at the death of Moses and Aaron
• Elijah's Story
• Ezekiel
• The story of Elisha {Al-Yasa'
• The story of Samuel and the beginnings of David
• The story of David (Dawud) : His merits, his virtues and the proofs of his prophecy
• How long did David live?
• The death of David
• Solomon (Sulayman) son of David
• The extent of his knowledge and the greatness of his kingdom
• The Hoopoe and the Queen of Sheba
• The story of the noble horsemen
• The building of the temple in Jerusalem
• The death of Solomon, the duration of his life and his kingdom
• The story of Zechariah (Zakariyâ) and John the Baptist (Yahyà)
• The causes of the murder of John the Baptist
• The story of Jesus son of Mary
• The Birth of the Servant and Messenger of God, Jesus Son of Mary the Virgin
• Of the absolute oneness of God. He is high above what the wrongdoers say
• The Descent of the Four Revealed Books
• Tuba Tree Description and its relationship to the signs of Jesus and his miracles
• The Table Event
• Words attributed to Jesus
• The elevation of Jesus to Heaven, by God, and the proof of the lie of the Jews and the Christians about the crucifixion
• Mention of the characteristics of Jesus, his qualities and his virtues