1. Adaptation of Intertestamental Apocalyptic Imagery:
Surah 53:13–15 places the "Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary" (Sidrat al-Muntahā) at the absolute boundary of the celestial realm. Historical-critical analysis identifies this structure as an evolution of Jewish apocalyptic literature, such as 2 Enoch 8:1–3, which details heavenly ascents featuring central paradise trees marking the presence of the Divine.
2. Literalization of Sectarian Literary Metaphors:
Incorporating a specific celestial tree near the "Garden of Refuge" (Jannat al-Maʾwā) adapts regional 7th-century Jewish mystical folklore. Treating literary motifs from pseudepigraphal works as physical, cosmic geography highlights the integration of circulating Late Antique traditions into the text.
Surah 53:13–15 (An-Najm) describes the Prophet's vision of the angelic entity during a second heavenly descent, locating the encounter at the boundary marker of the Lote Tree adjacent to the heavenly abode.
The Quran Verses
Surah 53:13–15
And he certainly saw him in another descent. At the Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary (Sidrat al-Muntahā). Near it is the Garden of Refuge.
The Cosmic Tree: The Surah establishes a physical landmark inside the highest celestial sphere: a literal Lote Tree marking the absolute border checkpoint where human and angelic knowledge stops.
The Historical Source: To a historical-critical scholar, this heavenly botany is a direct structural import from intertestamental Jewish apocalyptic literature. Specifically, the pseudepigraphal Book of 2 Enoch (8:1–3) describes the journey through the heavens: "And those men took me from thence, and led me up on to the third heaven, and placed me there; and I looked down, and saw the produce of that place... and in the midst of the trees that of life, in that place whereon the Lord rests, when he goes up into paradise."
The Verdict: The Sidrat al-Muntaha is an altered, oral-tradition evolution of the Biblical and Enochic "Tree of Life" inside Paradise. The text co-opts regional Jewish mystical folklore current to the 7th-century Near East, treating sectarian literary metaphors as concrete cosmic geography.