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The Quran states...

And (remember) when Ibrahim (Abraham) and (his son) Isma'il (Ishmael) were raising the foundations of the House (the Ka'bah at Makkah), (saying), "Our Lord! Accept (this service) from us. Verily! You are the All-Hearer, the All-Knower." 2:107

Is there anything in Jewish tradition that would locate Abraham and Ishmael in the location of present day Mecca?

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closed as off-topic by LN6595, mbloch, Avrohom Yitzchok, sabbahillel, Alex Mar 23 '18 at 21:35

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    It's not like we know where he was every minute of his life. He could have gone to China or Finland or even crossed the Bering strait and made it to Argentina for all we know. That's not a reason to assume he actually went to any of these places. – Heshy Mar 23 '18 at 11:20
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    On Hagar's return to her father's house, together with her son Ishamael, she encountered a Well which she named 'Be'er Lachai Ro'i'. Ibn Ezra (Gen. 16:14) identifies this well as Zamzam. – Oliver Mar 23 '18 at 16:55
  • @Oliver "to her father's house"? – Heshy Mar 23 '18 at 17:38
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    @Heshy The Midrash indicates so (quoted also by Rashi) – Oliver Mar 23 '18 at 18:22
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    How is this comparative religion? It's prompted by a claim from another religion, but the question is about what our sources say. – Monica Cellio♦ Mar 23 '18 at 22:26
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Abraham left Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan, stopping at Haran along the way (Genesis 11:31, 12:5). Chaldeans were described as coming from the north (Jeremiah 1:14). Since Mecca is far south, a simple reading of those verses gives no reason to think Abraham was in Arabia on the way to Canaan.

If you would like to rely on this map, it would also show Abraham's journey from Ur to Haran as being in a northwest direction, the opposite direction from Mecca.

Abraham is described as having left Canaan for Egypt and Philistia (both to the west of Canaan), and traveled within Canaan, and Isaac and Ishmael buried him in Canaan (Genesis 12-25), but to my knowledge is never described in the Bible or rabbinic writings as having been in Arabia.

While I'm not well-versed in Islamic literature, this tradition might have risen from the altars that Abraham is described as having built throughout Canaan (Genesis 12:7,8, 13:18, 22:9).

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Your quote seems to refer to something that Avraham and Yishmael did together. The scope for that is limited.

Avraham was living in Cana'an (Bereishit 13:12) from the time Yismael was born (Bereishit 16) to when he was expelled (Bereishit 21) except for Avraham and Sarah's journey in Bereishit 20. The torah doesn't tell us whether Hagar and Yismael were with them when they made this trip, but for the sake of this question let's assume they were. The question, then, is the area covered by:

And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the land of the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur; and he sojourned in Gerar.

According to Easton's Bible Dictionary as cited by Wikipedia, Gerar is in the Negev desert in Israel. According to the same source, Shur is in the area northeast of Egypt. The location of Kadesh is less clear, in part because it's not clear if Kadesh and Kadesh Barnea are the same place, but all of the places identified by scholars are well north of Mecca, being in the Wildenress of Zin or the Wilderness of Paran.

While it is theoretically possible that, in travelling from Cana'an to Shur, Avraham and his household took a very roundabout detour, the torah gives no reason to think so.

According to the torah narrative, the next time Yishmael and Avraham are together is when Yishmael and Yitzchak come to bury Avraham.

It is, of course, hard to prove a negative. I don't know of any traditions that place them together in that location, but it's always possible there are sources I don't know.

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