"The first House (of worship) appointed for men was that at Bibakkata (Bakkah): Blessed and a guidance

for all kinds of beings" Sura 3/96 The question is can we clearly see evidence that Bakkah and Makkah are truly in the same location? BAKKAH AND MAKKAH REALLY THE SAME LOCATION? Most of the Muslims believe that both Bakkah and Makkah are a reference to the same place. Is this supported in the Tawrah and in the Quran? Hence, there is no proof that this is the case from a Quranic scrutiny. The Quran is fully familiar with the term 'Makkah' as a place and refers to it. However, there is no support for the claim in the Quran that 'Bakkah' that majority of Muslims believe is Makkah is an old name for 'Makkah' or another name for it.

Allah mentions Makkah in the Quran

"And He it is Who has withheld men's hands from you, and has withheld your hands from them, in the valley of Makkata (Makkah) after He had made you victors over them. God is seer of what you do" Sura 48/24 We have the Quran makes use of the word 'Makkah' in Sura 48/24 why didnt Allah make use of the same name in Sura 3/96?
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According to the Quran, 'Bakkah' is the original sanctuary and is being confirmed during a dialogue with the Ahlul Kitab who would have had recourse to their own scriptures. Hence, who is best to speak about the first house of worship than those who were blessed with being recipients of the Message? "And before you, We sent no one, except men, to whom We granted revelation. fasal (SO ASK) (plural) ahla (THE PEOPLE) dhik'ri (OF THE REMINDER), if you don't know." Sura 21/7 "If you are fi (IN) shakkin( DOUBT) mimm (OF WHAT) anzaln (WE HAVE REVEALED) to you, fasali (THEN ASK) alladhna (THOSE WHO) yaqrana (HAVE BEEN READING) kitba (THE BOOK) min qablika (BEFORE YOU)." Sura 10/94 "wam (AND NOT) arsaln (WE SENT) min min (BEFORE YOU) ill (EXCEPT) rijlan (MEN) n (WE REVEAL) ilayhim (TO THEM) fasal (SO ASK) ahla (THE PEOPLE) dhik'ri (OF THE REMINDER) if you l talamna (DONt KNOW)." Sura 16/43-44 All food was lawful to the Children of Israel, except what Israel Made unlawful for itself, before the Law (of Moses) was revealed. Say: "Bring ye the Law and study it, if ye be men of truth." If any, after this, invent a lie and attribute it to Allah, they are indeed unjust wrong-doers. Say: "Allah speaks the Truth: follow the religion of Abraham, the upright in faith; he was not of the polytheists." The first House (of worship) appointed for men was that at Bakkah: Full of blessing and of guidance for all kinds of beings: In it are Signs Manifest; (for example), the Station of Abraham; whoever enters it attains security; Pilgrimage to is a duty men owe to Allah,- those who can afford the journey; but if any deny faith, Allah stands not in need of any of His creatures. Say: "O People of the Book! Why do you reject the Signs of Allah, when Allah is Himself witness to all you do?" Say: "O ye People of the Book! Why do you obstruct those who believe from the path of Allah seeking to make it crooked, while you were yourselves witnesses? but Allah is not unmindful of all that you do." O ye who believe! If you listen to a faction among the People of the Book, they would (indeed) render you disbelievers after ye have believed!" Sura 3/93-100 'Bakkah' was a place known to Ahlul Kitab as is evidenced from their scriptures and in the dialogue captured above. What is meant by 'Baca' in the Hebrew text ( weeping ) does not deter from the point that this valley in Hebrew: emeq {ay-mek} valley / lowland / open country or vale) within Palestine was known to the People of the Book at the time of Prophet Muhammad's preaching.
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How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Yahweh of hosts! My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of Yahweh: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living elohim. Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O Yahweh of hosts, my King, and my Elohim. Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools. They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before Elohim. O Yahweh Elohim of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O Elohim of Jacob. Selah. Behold, O Elohim our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed. For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my Elohim, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. For Yahweh Elohim is a sun and shield: Yahweh will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. O Yahweh of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee. Psalm 84/1-12 If, as the Quranic verse states, Prophet Abraham's first house was a blessing for all Alamin in Sura 3/96 and that pilgrimage was 'proclaimed' to all alamin in Sura 22/27. And proclaim to mankind the pilgrimage. They will come to thee on foot and on every lean camel; they will come from every deep ravine" Sura 22/27

Why did no Hebrew prophet after Prophet Abraham of which there were many ever travel to Makkah to perform the pilgrimage?
In Arabia are there an altar which is given prominence at the Ka'aba, whereas the altar was an integral part of the tabernacle and then the Jerusalem temple, necessary for the sacrificial system instituted by Elohim.

The Altar of Burnt Offering

Build an altar of acacia wood, three cubits high; it is to be square, five cubits long and five cubits wide. Make a horn at each of the four corners, so that the horns and the altar are of one piece, and overlay the altar with bronze. Make all its utensils of bronzeits pots to remove the ashes, and its shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks and fire pans. Make a grating for it, a bronze network, and make a bronze ring at each of the four corners of the network. Put it under the ledge of the altar so that it is halfway up the altar. Make poles of acacia wood for the altar and overlay them with bronze. The poles are to be inserted into the rings so they will be on two sides of the altar when it is carried. Make the altar hollow, out of boards. It is to be made just as you were shown on the mountain. Exodus 27/1-8
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On that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of Yahweh, and there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar that stood before Yahweh was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings. 1 Kings 8/64

Another fact we know is that the Ka'aba is empty and certainly no humans dwell in it.
Yet Psalm 84 mentions those who dwell in Yahweh's house. This makes no sense unless it is the Jerusalem temple, which had rooms within its courts in 1 Chronicles 28/11-12 for those who were responsible for its upkeep and ceremony. Then David gave his son Solomon the plans for the portico of the temple, its buildings, its storerooms, its upper parts, its inner rooms and the place of atonement. He gave him the plans of all that the Spirit had put in his mind for the courts of the temple of Yahweh and all the surrounding rooms, for the treasuries of the temple of Elohim and for the treasuries for the dedicated things. 1 Chronicles 28/11-12

So this temple had the following:

1) 2) 3) 4) Storerooms Upper parts Inner rooms And a place of atonement

A simple question is does the Kaaba have these specific places? Another key fact is that the pilgrims in Psalm 84 are certainly not on their way to Mecca, as their destination is given as Zion. Mount Zion is one of the hills on which Jerusalem is founded. In the Bible Zion is often used synonymously with Jerusalem in Isaiah 2/2. In the last days the mountain of Yahwehs temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. Isaiah 2/2 We have the word used for pilgrimage in Psalm 84/5 we know that both languages are Semitic and close in many ways, having the same or similar words for lots of things. We can at least see consistency in the Hebrew word translated here as pilgrimage to be similar to the Arabic hajj.

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In fact, it is not. The only similar Hebrew word that I could find in my exhaustive concordance was hag, which is often translated as festival and therefore seems to be in some way related to the Arabic hajj. The Hebrew word used in Psalm 84/5 is from a completely different root to this and is usually translated as road or highway. Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart mesillovt (are the highways) to Zion. Psalm 84/5 Thus it seems from a brief consideration that the phrase is literally like saying in English those ... who have set their hearts on the highway, meaning the way they must take to get to Jerusalem. So even the ideas of pilgrimage in the Hebrew Scriptures and the Qur'an have a different emphasis and just because the English translation of Psalm 84/5 says pilgrimage we can't simply equate it with the Hajj.

The Temple also had door keepers

In Makkah we know that these are no recognized function of doorkeeper for the Ka'aba, However, this was an official job at the Jerusalem Temple (2 Kings 25/18). The commander of the guards also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of the second rank, and the three doorkeepers. 2 Kings 25/18 Bakka has been translated either as weeping or balsam trees (which grow in dry places). It could be a real place, in which case it was a valley through which the pilgrims

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passed during their journey. In either case, their pilgrimage is clearly to Jerusalem, as evidenced by the rest of the Psalm.

Why on earth would the Children of Israel, living in on their way to Jerusalem, take a huge detour through Makkah?
The old sanctuary that Prophet Abraham constructed has been described as a mubaraka (blessing) and a huda (guidance) for all alamin (creation) in the Quran. How can the Kaaba sanctuary today at Makkah serve the conditions of a blessing and guidance to all mankind, if true worshipping Jews and Christians are forbidden from its precincts? Its a fact in Jerusalem, Muslims, Christians and Jews are all allowed within its environs. This lends support to the notion that the Kaaba sanctuary was made sacred only for those believers (mu'mins) after the advent of Islam in Arabia. The first House (of worship) appointed for men was that at Bakkah: Mubarakan (Blessed) and a guidance for all kinds of beings Sura 3/96 The Quranic use of the term 'Blessed' to signify a land that is blessed has always been reserved for localities around the holy land; For example, some terms used in the Quran. (1) Barakna hawlahu Sura 17/1 - Masjid Aqsa (2) Barakna fiha Sura 7/137 - Blessed lands for the Children of Israel; (3) We have in Sura 21/071 - Prophets Abraham and Lot delivered to the blessed lands (4) In Sura 21/81 - Wind flowed for Solomon on the blessed lands (5) In Sura 34/18 - Saba and cities in-between Mubarakan Sura 3/96 - The first house that Prophet Abraham built The Quran never makes use of the term 'barakna' to describe the sanctuary at Makkah, which is normally referred to as 'Masjid Haram' (Prohibited / inviolable mosque / sacred mosque) or the Kaaba which is present within its bounds.

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Another irrefutable fact is the Quran makes it clear that sacrifices took place inside the ancient house or at its location. This is extremely difficult to reconcile with the location of the Kaaba as even today, no sacrifices take place at or around the Kaaba or anywhere within the precincts of the haram. According to the Quran, Prophet Abraham's first house that he built with Prophet Ishmael has never been described as the 'Masjid Haram', the 'Kaaba' or indeed the 'Haram' in the Quran. Hence, the latter 'haram' (forbidden) being the key epithet for the site at Makkah.

The term 'haram' means to forbid, prevent, to make unlawful, deprive, inviolable, to be refused something or to involve some contention or wrangling. This definition is certainly consistent with many Quranic narratives where the sanctuary at Makkah became a contention between the disbelievers and the Muslims, the latter at times being forbidden from its environs. The original sanctuary built by Prophets Abraham and Ishmael however has been described with the key epithet 'Bayt' (house) and usually with a prefix or a suffix but without the use of term 'haram' (forbidden / inviolable). Whether this is the first house

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(Awwala Bayt) or the Ancient House (Bayt al-ateeq) or simply 'the house' (al-bayt), there appears to be consistent use of the term 'Bayt' without the use of 'haram'. Where Bayt and haram appear combined, the Arabian sanctuary is indicated as in Sura 5/2 and 5/97. Furthermore, 'al-bayt' simply means 'the house', a particular structure (definite noun) for habitation or a place of worship. This can be a reference for the Kaaba or any other well-known site of worship such as an ancient house.

To describe the sanctuary at Makkah (Saudi Arabia)

Masjid Al Haram (Sacred Mosque) in Sura 2:144, 2:217, 5:2, 8:34, 9:7, 9:19, 9:28, 17:1, 22:25, 48:25; 48:27 Kaaba Sura 5:95; 5:97 Bayt Al Haram (Sacred House) Sura 5:2, 5:97 Bayt (House) Sura 8:35, 2:158 Note that the understanding that the 'sacred mosque' is a reference to the grounds within a certain perimeter, in which the Kaaba (or sacred house) resides, is not incompatible with any of the Quranic verses.

To describe the place of worship that Prophet Abraham built with his son.
Baitika Muharimi (Your Sacred House) in Sura 14:37 Bayt al Ateeq (Ancient House) Sura 22:29, 22:33 Awwala Bayt (First House) Sura 3:96 Bayt Al Ma'amur (Frequented House)- Sura 52:4 Bayt (House) Sura 22:26, 2:125, 2:127 Miim-Kaf-Kaf = Sucking, Sucking up, Absorbing, drinking up, Destruction/Destroying, diminishing, diminution/failing; failure, to cast, to throw away, to discard, to straighten/tighten or impede/restrict, to beseech/ask/accept, crowding, competition (izdihaam). Makkah (city of). According to classical Arabic dictionaries, the word "maka(t)" mainly means destruction/wearing down, among other meanings. It is listed in classical Arabic dictionaries under either MKK or MK.

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Al-Mohit lists it under MKK, the meaning given is destruction and wearing down which is consistent with the context of standoff in Sura 48:24. And He it is Who has withheld their hands from you and your hands from them in the midst of Makkah, after He had made you victors over them. And Allah is Ever the AllSeer of what you do. Sura 48:24 It also lists the meaning of TMKK as an adversary's insistence on something, which is also consistent with the standoff in Sura 48:24. Lisan Al-Arab lists it under MK and the meaning of MK(t) is given as "destruction" and TMK as "destroy". Al-Wasit lists it under MK, the meanings given are: sucking everything out, insisting on revenge from an adversary, and the thing, which is worn down or destroyed. Al-Ghani lists it under MKK, the meanings given are: sucking, insisting with demands on an adversary.

Here is a translation of Sura 48:24 using Classical Arabic dictionaries and the context of war from the verses to translate the common description "maka(t)":
And it is He Who has restrained their hands from you and your hands from them in the midst Makkah (of destruction) after that He gave you the victory over them. And Allah sees well all that ye do. Sura 4824 As one can see, the clear classical Arabic meaning fits perfectly in the context of the military standoff in verse Sura 48:24. Based on the context from the Quran, linguistic evidence from Arabic dictionaries, and the lack of any evidence supporting that there was a "pre-quranic" town by the name of Maka(t), the only logical unbiased conclusion is that "maka(t)" is not the name of "prequranic" town but is simply a mundane common noun like thousands of others in the Quran. As for it being mentioned (Mecca) in Sura 33:50 it has clearly been added. Hence, the word Maka rendered as MK or MKK which means Destruction or Wearing down we
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can safely exclude the word Maka as meaning Mecca from Sura 48:24. We can also exclude Mecca from Surah 33:50 as it has been inserted in some translation and not others. In the end it seems that Mecca has been excluded from the Quran altogether. Many traveled great distances and endured hardship to be able to make it to Jerusalem. The way was sometimes discouraging, so they would sing and worship as they traveled. Psalm 84 expresses the traveler's deep longing for the presence of God, to be in His house, to be in His courts, and to dwell in His presence during a very difficult journey through the Valley of Baca.

Reference: 1) http://www.quransmessage.com/ 2) http://www.answering-islam.org/BibleCom/baca.html

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