In this post I am going to cite verses from the Quran testifying to the existence of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ at the time of Muhammad. I will show how the Muslim scripture affirms that the original revelations which were entrusted to both the Jews and Christians were still in their possession at the time of Muhammad. I will aim to prove from this fact that the Muslims are forced to acknowledge that the canonical books of the NT must be the very inspired records of the revelation that Christ himself gave to and through his disciples and their followers.
Since the NT writings were the very Gospel which Christians possessed during Muhammad’s lifetime, and since Muhammad confirmed the authenticity of these very writings, this means that Muhammad basically confirmed the inspiration and preservation of the NT canon, and by extension the canonical Gospels as the inscripturation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
UNCORRUPT SCRIPTURES AT JESUS’ TIME
You John/Yahya, take The Book with power/strength, and We gave/brought him the judgment/rule (as) a boy/child/infant. S. 19:12 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/19/st19.htm)
So she came with him (to) her nation carrying him , they said: “You Mary, you had come (with) a strange and confusing thing.” You Aaron’s sister, your father was not (a) human/man of bad/evil , and your mother was not an fornicatress/adulteress/prostitute So she pointed/indicated to him, they said: “How (do) we converse/speak (to) whom was in the crib/cradle a boy/child/infant?” He said: “That I am God’s worshipper/slave, He gave/brought me The Book and He made me a prophet.” S. 19:27-30 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira)
And Mary, Imran’s daughter, who guarded her virginity, so We breathed into her of Our Spirit, and she confirmed the Words of her Lord and His Books (wa’saddaqat bi-kalimati rabbiha wa’kutubihi), and became one of the obedient. S. 66:12 Arberry
And He teaches/instructs him The Book and the wisdom and the Torah and the Bible/Holy book descended on Jesus… And confirming to what (is) between my hands from the Torah (wa’musaddiqan lima bayna yadayya mina al-tawrati) and to permit/allow for you some (of) what was forbidden on you, and I came to you with a sign/evidence from your Lord, so fear and obey God and obey me. S. 3:48, 50 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/3/st19.htm)
When God said, ‘Jesus Son of Mary, remember My blessing upon thee and upon thy mother, when I confirmed thee with the Holy Spirit, to speak to men in the cradle, and of age; and when I taught thee the Book, the Wisdom, the Torah, the Gospel; and when thou createst out of clay, by My leave, as the likeness of a bird, and thou breathest into it, and it is a bird, by My leave; and thou healest the blind and the leper by My leave, and thou bringest the dead forth by My leave; and when restrained from thee the Children of Israel when thou camest unto them with the clear signs, and the unbelievers among them said, “This is nothing but sorcery manifest.” S. 5:110 Arberry
And when Jesus Mary’s son said: “You Israel’s sons and daughters, that I am God’s messenger to you, confirming to what (is) between my hands from the Torah (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayya mina al-tawrati), and an announcer of good news with a messenger (that) comes from after me, his name (is) Ahmad.” So when he came to them with the evidences, they said: “That (is) clear/evident magic/sorcery.” S. 61:6 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/61/st19.htm)
UNCORRUPT SCRIPTURES AT MUHAMMAD’S TIME
A. Muhammad confirmed the scriptures which were between his/it’s (the Quran’s) hands.
He descended on you The Book with the truth, confirming to what (is) between His hands (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi), and He descended the Torah and the New Testament/Bible. From before guidance to the people, and He descended the Separator of Right and Wrong/Koran, that those who disbelieved with God’s verses, for them (is) a strong (severe) torture, and God (is) glorious/mighty, (owner) of a revenge/punishment. S. 3:3-4 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/3/st19.htm)
And We descended to you The Book with the truth , confirming to what (is) between his hands from The Book (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi mina al-kitabi), and guarding/protecting on it, so judge/rule between them with what God descended and do not follow their self attractions for desires about what came to you from the truth, to each from you We made/put God’s decreed way of life/method/law and order , and a clear/easy/plain way , and if God wanted/willed, He would have made you one nation/generation, and but to test you in what He gave you, so race/surpass (to) the goodnesses/generosity (good deeds), to God (is) your return altogether, so He informs you with what you were in it differing/disagreeing (P) S. 5:48 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/5/st19.htm)
And this the Koran was/is not that it be fabricated from (by) other than God, and but confirmation (of) what (is) between his (Prophet Mohammad’s) hands (tasdeeqa allathee bayna yadayhi), and detailing/explaining The Book, no doubt/suspicion in it, (it is) from the creations all together’s/(universes’) Lord. S. 10:37 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/10/st19.htm)
In their narration/information (stories there) had been an example/warning to those of the pure minds/hearts (it) was not an information/speech to be fabricated and but confirmation (to) which (is) between his hands (tasdeeqa allathee bayna yadayhi) and detailing/explaining/clarifying every thing, and guidance, and mercy to (a) nation believing. S. 12:111 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/12/st19.htm)
And those who disbelieved said: “We will never/not believe with this the Koran, and nor with what (is) between its hands (bayna yadayhi).” And if you see/understand if the unjust/oppressive (were) made to stand/suspended at their Lord, some of them return to some the saying/words/opinion and belief, those who were weakened say to those who became arrogant: “Where it not for you, we would be believers/believing.” S. 34:31 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/34/st19.htm)
And what We inspired/transmitted to you from The Book, it is the truth confirming to what (is) between his hands (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi), that truly God (is) with His worshippers/slaves expert/experienced (E), seeing/knowing. S. 35:31 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/35/st19.htm)
And from before it (is) Moses’ Book, a leader/example, and mercy, and that (is a) confirming Book (in an) Arabic tongue/speech, to warn/give notice (to) those who caused injustice/ oppression, and good news to the good doers… They said: “You our nation that we heard/listened to a Book (that) was descended from after Moses, confirming to what (is) between his hands (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi), it guides to the truth and to (a) straight/direct road/path.” S. 46:12, 30 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/46/st19.htm)
B. Muhammad confirmed whatever Scriptures that the Jews and Christians possessed at that time.
Children of Israel, remember My blessing wherewith I blessed you, and fulfil My covenant and I shall fulfil your covenant; and have awe of Me. And believe in that I have sent down, confirming that which is with you, and be not the first to disbelieve in it. And sell not My signs for a little price; and fear you Me. And do not confound the truth with vanity, and do not conceal the truth wittingly. And perform the prayer, and pay the alms, and bow with those that bow. Will you bid others to piety, and forget yourselves while you recite the Book? Do you not understand? S. 2:40-44 Arberry
When there came to them a Book from God, confirming what was with them — and they aforetimes prayed for victory over the unbelievers — when there came to them that they recognized, they disbelieved in it; and the curse of God is on the unbelievers. S. 2:89 Arberry
And when they were told, ‘Believe in that God has sent down,’ they said, ‘We believe in what was sent down on us’; and they disbelieve in what is beyond that, yet it is the truth confirming what is with them. Say: ‘Why then were you slaying the Prophets of God in former time, if you were believers?’ S. 2:91 Arberry
Say: “Who was an enemy to Gabriel, so that he descended it on your heart/mind with God’s permission, confirming to what (is) between his hands (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi), and (a) guidance and a good news to the believers.” S. 2:97 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/2/st19.htm)
When there has come to them a Messenger from God confirming what was with them, a party of them that were given the Book reject the Book of God behind their backs, as though they knew not, S. 2:101 Arberry
You who have been given the Book, believe in what We have sent down, confirming what is with you, before We obliterate faces, and turn them upon their backs, or curse them as We cursed the Sabbath-men, and God’s command is done. S. 4:47 Arberry
C. Muhammad exhorted Jews and Christians to live in accord with the Torah and Gospel which they still had.
And how (do) they ask you to judge/rule, and at them (is) the Torah/Old Testament, in it (is) God’s judgment/rule, then they turn away from after that, and those are not with the believing. That We descended the Torah/Old Testament, in it (is) guidance and light, the prophets those who submitted/surrendered , judge/rule with it, to those who guided/Jews , and the knowledgeable Lord worshippers , and the religious scholars with what they memorized/safe kept (learned) from God’s Book , and they were not on it witnessing/present ; so do not fear the people and fear Me, and do not buy/volunteer with My signs/verses a small price, and who does not judge/rule with what God descended, so those, they are the disbelievers.
And We wrote/decreed on them in it, that the self (is) with the self, and the eye (is) with the eye, and the nose (is) with the nose, and the ear (is) with the ear, and the tooth (is) with the tooth, and the wounds/cuts (are) equal revenge/punishment equal to crime, so who gave charity (forgave) with it, so it is cover/substitution for him, and who does not judge/rule with what God descended, so those, those are the unjust/oppressors.
And We sent after (following) on their tracks with Jesus, Mary’s son confirming for what (is) between his hands from the Torah/Old Testament (musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi mina al-tawrati), and We gave him the New Testament/Bible in it (is) guidance and light, and confirming to what (is) between his hands from the Torah/Old Testament (wa’musaddiqan lima bayna yadayhi mina al-tawrati), and guidance and a sermon/advice/warning to the fearing and obeying. And the New Testament’s/Bible’s people should judge/rule with what God descended in it, and who does not judge/rule with what God descended, so those, they are the debauchers. S. 5:43-47 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/5/st19.htm)
Had they followed the Laws of the Old and New Testaments and what was revealed to them from their Lord, they would have received Our bounties from above and below in abundance. Some of them are modest people, but many of them commit the worst sins… (Muhammad), tell the People of the Book, “You have nothing unless you follow the Old and New Testaments and that which (the Quran) God has revealed to you.” Whatever has been revealed to you (Muhammad) from your Lord will only increase their disbelief and rebellion (against you). Do not grieve for the unbelieving people. 5:66, 68 (Muhammad Sarwar https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/5/st23.htm)
Here’s another translation:
And if that they took care of the Torah/Old Testament, and the Bible/New Testament and what was descended to them from their Lord, they would have eaten from above them and from below their feet; from them (is) a nation economizing/moderate , and many from them what they were making/doing became bad/evil/harmful… Say: “You The Book’s people, you are not on a thing, until you keep up the Torah/Old Testament and the Bible/New Testament , and what was descended to you from your (P) Lord.” And what was descended to you (S/M) from your Lord increases (E) many of them tyranny/arrogance, and disbelief, so do not grieve/sadden on the nation, the disbelieving. (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/5/st19.htm)
D. Muhammad believed Jews and Christians still possessed the Books revealed to them.
The Jews say: “The Christians are misguided”, and the Christians say: “The Jews are misguided”, yet all read the same Book the Bible. Similarly, those who know nothing say the same thing as them. Allah will decide between them on Judgement Day regarding their differences. S. 2:113 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/2/st77.htm)
And there is a sect of them twist their tongues with the Book, that you may suppose it part of the Book, yet it is not part of the Book; and they say, ‘It is from God,’ yet it is not from God, and they speak falsehood against God, and that wittingly. It belongs not to any mortal that God should give him the Book, the Judgment, the Prophethood, then he should say to men, ‘Be you servants to me apart from God.’ Rather, ‘Be you masters in that you know the Book, and in that you study.’ S. 3:78-79 Arberry
All food was lawful to the Children of Israel save what Israel forbade for himself before the Torah was sent down. Say: ‘Bring you the Torah now, and recite it, if you are truthful.’ S. 3:93 Arberry
Those who follow the messenger, the prophet the illiterate/belonging to a nation, whom they find him written AT THEM in the Torah/Old Testament, and the New Testament/Bible , He orders them with the kindness/goodness , and forbids/prevents them from the obscenity , and He permits/allows for them the pure/allowed/permitted , and forbids/prohibits on them the bad/spoiled/wicked , and lays/raises from them their weight/crime/burden, and the leather or iron collars or handcuffs which was on them, so those who believed with him and supported/aided him , and gave him victory/aid and followed the light which was descended with him, those are the successful/winners. S. 7:157 (Muhammad Ahmed–Samira https://www.islamawakened.com/quran/7/st19.htm)
Truly it is the revelation of the Lord of all Being, brought down by the Faithful Spirit upon thy heart, that thou mayest be one of the warners, in a clear, Arabic tongue. Truly it IS IN the Scriptures of the ancients. Was it not a sign for them, that it is known to the learned of the Children of Israel? S. 26:192-197 Arberry
Hast thou considered him who turns his back and gives a little, and then grudgingly? Does he possess the knowledge of the Unseen, and therefore he sees? Or has he not been told of what IS IN the scrolls of Moses, and Abraham, he who paid his debt in full? S. 53:33-37 Arberry
STUDY QURAN
In 2015 HarperOne published The Study Quran: A New Translation and Commentary (SQ), the first major English Quran commentary, whose editor-in-chief happens to be the renowned Muslim philosopher and Sufi scholar Seyyed Hossein Nasr. The notes and articles are the work of several prominent Muslim scholars/theologians/philosophers from different Islamic perspectives, which helps limit sectarian biases filtering their way into the interpretation of the passages.
I quote from the SQ to see what it has to say in regards to the identity of the Gospel which the Quran affirms. All emphasis will be mine.
Here’s the commentary to Q. 3:3-4, where Muhammad is depicted as confirming the scriptures “between his hands”:
For Muslims, Tawrāt (Torah) usually refers to the five books of Moses (much less commonly, it is thought to denote the entire Tanakh), and Injīl (Gospel) refers to the revelation given to Jesus. But questions remain as to whether the Injīl is the same as the evangelion (Greek, “Gospel”), and whether the Tawrāt is the same as the Pentateuch as we now have it. There was most likely no Arabic translation of the Bible at the time of the Quranic revelation; such a translation only appeared at least a century later. It is unlikely that in the early seventh century the texts in circulation would have been significantly different from the texts approved by Jewish and Christian authorities at the end of the fourth century, when both canons and the central doctrines of Christianity, including the Trinity, were formally established.
These verses state that these books were revealed in the past, but the Quran confirms what was before it (ma bayna yadayhi), which is understood to mean “previous to” by the commentators, but which can also mean “in the presence of,” as does the English word “before.” Sensitive to this question, al-Rāzī asks himself, “How can this phrase refer to what is past?” and answers, “That lore, owing to how familiar it is, is referred to in that way,” namely, as though it is present to the revelation of the Quran and commonly known if only in a general way. Jesus is spoken of in a similar fashion in 5:46, where Jesus and the message given to him confirm the Torah, and 5:47 follows with language very similar to that in 3:6.
The Quran confirms (e.g., 2:41; 2:101; 6:92) what was before it, but does not describe the content of that existing teaching. If both the texts and interpretation of the People of the Book are true and correct, it would be through their moral shortcomings that they fail in their religion. This seems unlikely, since the Quran criticizes some of their doctrines (4:171), not only their behavior. If the texts are true, but the interpretation is incorrect, this would support the position of those who accuse the People of the Book of distorting (taḥrīf) the meaning, but not the text of scripture (see 2:75; 4:46; 5:13, 41). For example, in later times some Muslims argued that the Trinity, as described in the Nicene Creed, is nowhere to be found in the Biblical text, but results from a faulty interpretation.
Another possibility is that the Injīl given to Jesus is conveyed by the existing Gospel, but is not coterminous with it, yet is still recognized and sanctioned by God. In this connection, it should be noted that, although monks are praised in the Quran (5:82), it is asserted that monasticism was not prescribed for them, but was a practice they initiated themselves (57:28). This would make the existing Gospel a different kind of Divine book than the Quran, constituting a work of Divinely inspired or approved authors rather than a message delivered directly through Gabriel. This would agree with the view of Christians themselves that the text is guided and sanctioned by God, but not directly revealed. In this way, the truths and commands of the Injīl given to Jesus are communicated to Christians through that which they had with them (2:89) and what is before the Quran. One could thus hold that the Quran, when referring to the Injīl that the Christians have with them, includes both the text and the normative tradition around that text insofar as they convey Christ’s original message to his apostles, which was given to him by God.
A similar approach could be taken regarding the Tawrāt (the Torah), which would allow Muslims to acknowledge the scriptures of the People of the Book, since God acknowledges them in the Quran, without affirming some of the interpretations and practices that may diverge from the original revelation. Such distinctions between text and interpretation are necessary, since God holds Himself and the People of the Book to their covenant (2:40; 9:111); mentions a partial (hence not total) forgetting of the original message (5:14); describes Islam as a fulfillment of prophecies in the Bible (7:157); enjoins Jews and Christians to govern themselves according to their scriptures (5:43– 47, 68); and advises the Prophet to ask the people of the Reminder, interpreted by most as the People of the Book (16:43; 21:7). For those reasons and because there is little to support a belief that the Bible has changed significantly since the seventh century, it becomes necessary to see the Quranic statements about the Jewish and Christian scriptures in light of the existing Jewish and Christian traditions and not as an alleged variation existent at the time. A ḥadīth states, “Do you not see these Jews and Christians? They read the Torah and the Gospel and do not act in accord with them.” See the essay “The Quranic View of Sacred History and Other Religions” and the commentary on 3:113– 15; 48:28. The description of God as Mighty, Possessor of Vengeance is also found in 5:95; 14:47; 39:37. (Pp. 146-147)
And this is what the SQ writes in respect to Q. 3:184:
184 The clear proofs are various demonstrations of truth (IK, Q). Scriptures renders zubur, which etymologically means something that is written; according to some it can refer to any book containing wisdom (R). It is different from zabūr, which refers specifically to the Psalms of David (al-Zabūr). Luminous Book refers to the Torah and the Gospel, but is not necessarily something different from the scriptures (zubur); the and in and the luminous Book signifies that scriptures and luminous Book are the same object (R), although scriptures can refer to Divine revelations sent to messengers in a more general sense (e.g., to Abraham, as mentioned in 87:18– 19; IK). (P. 190)
And here’s the notes to Q. 5:43-48:
43-44 … This verse then, along with vv. 44-47, indicates that the Torah and Gospel REMAIN VALID SOURCES of moral and legal judgment AND GUIDANCE for Jews and Christians, respectively, EVEN AFTER THE COMING OF THE PROPHET–INDEED, EVEN IN HIS PRESENCE. See also v. 68 where the People of the Book are likewise enjoined to observe their scriptures… (P. 298)
46 … In the present verse both Jesus and the Gospel he brings are separately described as confirming the Torah. Jesus is also described as confirming the Torah in 3:50 and 61:6, as is John the Baptist in 3:39. That Jesus “confirms the Torah” means that he upholds all Torah rulings not specifically abrogated by the Gospel (T); see also 3:50, where Jesus comes to make lawful unto the Israelites part of that which was forbidden to them. The Gospel here, like the Torah in v. 44, is described as containing a guidance and a light. The Quran is also described as a light in v 15; 7:157; 64:8.
47 Several commentators note that enjoining the people of the Gospel to judge by what God has sent down therein means that they should follow the rulings of the Torah in most cases, since Jesus himself lived largely according to the Torah rulings, with the exception of those that the Gospel abrogates (IK), and since the Gospel itself contains teachings and exhortations, but relatively few legal rulings (Z). This verse indicates that the Gospel REMAINS A VALID SOURCE OF GUIDANCE for the people of the Gospel, just as vv. 43-44 suggest that the Jews can continue to find guidance in the Torah. The CONTINUING VALIDITY of these two scriptures is also suggested in v. 68… Several commentators, however, argue that the exhortation here to follow the Gospel indicates only that they should have followed the Gospel prior to the coming of the Quran, which thereafter abrogated the scripture that came before it (IK, R). This reading seems implausible in light of other Quranic verses, however, since v. 43 questions why the Jews have come to the Prophet for judgment (regarding two Jewish adulterers) when they have the Torah indicating that Prophetic adjudication is not necessary (EVEN DURING HIS LIFETIME) AS LONG AS THEY FOLLOW THEIR OWN SCRIPTURE. And indeed, in issuing his ruling in that case–namely, the implementation of the penalty of stoning, the Prophet stated that his actions were intended to revive (AND THUS LEGITIMATE) the Torah ruling for the Jews (see commentary on 5:41-44). (Pp. 299-300)
48 This verse addresses the Prophet directly and describes the Book sent down to him–that is, the Quran– as confirming the Book that came before it, just as the Gospel confirms the Torah. The Quran is also described as “confirming” earlier scriptures in 2:41, 89, 91, 97, 101; 3:3, 81; 6:92; 35:31; 46:30. The Quran is further described as a protector (muhaymin) over the previous scriptures, meaning that the Quran testifies to THE VALIDITY OF THE EARLIER SCRIPTURES and serves as their trustee, keeper, and guardian (T, Z). “Protector” (al-Muhaymin) is also one of the Names of God in the Quran (59:23). The idea of the Quran as guardian and keeper of previous revelations is consistent with 5:41c and 5:45c, which report that the Prophet ordered the sentence of stoning for the two idolaters as well as retribution for killing and injury in order to reestablish the original Torah ruling on these matters. When the Prophet “judges between them”–that is, the People of the Book–this verse enjoins him to do so in accordance with what God has sent down, which most major commentators understand to mean that he should judge according to what God had revealed to him, namely the Quran (Bd, T, Z). Alternately, it could mean that he should judge the People of the Book according to what God has sent down TO THEM, namely, THEIR OWN SCRIPTURES (WHICH IS WHAT THE PROPHET EXPLICITLY DOES IN THE INCIDENT DISCUSSED IN VV. 41-43). That he should follow not their caprices means that he should not rule in accordance with their unwarranted digressions from or alterations to their own law, as discussed in vv. 41-47 (T), or that he should comply with their desire to alter or neglect what has come to the Prophet himself in the Quran (Bd). The Prophet is similarly warned against following the caprices of the People of the Book in the following verse, as well as in 2:120, 145; 42:15.
Although vv. 41-47, taken together, suggest THE VALIDITY OF JEWS AND CHRISTIANS JUDGING BY THEIR OWN SCRIPTURES, AND THUS THE CONTINUING SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE TO BE FOUND IN THOSE SCRIPTURES, this verse goes farther by asserting the providential nature of different religious communities and their distinct laws and practices. Indeed, the verse does not pertain only to Jews and Christians, but rather makes a universal statement about all religions. For each among you We have appointed a law and a way indicates that different religious communities may have different ritual and legal formulations specifically “appointed” for them by God, and that each religious community is independent of the laws of other such communities, even if the essential truths and principles of the religions are the same (IK, Q, R, T). (Pp. 300-301)
Here, now, are a few snippets from one of SQ’s essays:
Other verses reiterate that the Quran confirms previous revelations and even religions (e.g., 2:97; 3:3; 10:37; 35:31; 46:30).5
The notion that previous scriptures have been abrogated in the sense of being nullified or excessively distorted to such an extent that their message no longer reflects the particularity of the original teachings, as some Muslims maintain,6 would seem to be contradicted by verses such as 5:43: And how is it that they come to thee for judgment, when they have the Torah, wherein is God’s Judgment? and 5:68: Say, “O People of the Book! You stand on naught till you observe the Torah and the Gospel, and that which has been sent down unto you from your Lord.” In this same vein, 5:47 says of Christians: Let the people of the Gospel judge by that which God has sent down therein. It would be contradictory for the Quran to speak of the efficacy of judging by the Torah and the Gospel if it were to also maintain that these scriptures have been abrogated or excessively distorted. It would also make little sense to say that the religions in which these scriptures are applicable are defunct, or were defunct at the time the Quran was revealed, for it is the methodologies developed within the religions that would provide their followers with the ability to judge in accord with them. If previous religions were abrogated by the revelation of the Quran, it would be implausible to tell the Prophet Muhammad to seek their counsel when it says, Ask the people of the Reminder, if you know not (16:43; cf. 21:7).7 (Joseph Lumbard, “The Quranic View of Sacred History and Other Religions,” pp. 1530-1531)
Although there are many correspondences between the stories of Jesus in the Quran and the Gospels, most of the divergences can be understood and even resolved by contextualizing them within the different theological environments in which they arise. It is, however, almost impossible to reconcile the greatest divergence, that between the different accounts of Jesus’ death. Christians maintain that Jesus took on the sins of all humanity and was crucified for their salvation, but the Quran states:
And for their saying, “We slew the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the messenger of God”—though they did not slay him, nor did they crucify him, but it appeared so unto them. Those who differ concerning him are in doubt thereof. They have no knowledge of it, but follow only conjecture; they slew him not for certain. But God raised him up unto Himself, and God is Mighty, Wise. (4:157– 58, emphasis added)
Most Muslim scholars throughout the centuries up to this day have viewed these verses as a straightforward denial of the crucifixion. They maintain that Jesus was assumed directly into Heaven and that another was crucified in his place. In the exegetical tradition, it is usually suggested that the one who betrayed Jesus was made to appear like him and then made to suffer on the cross. Other exegetes maintain that Jesus was nailed to the cross, but that he only lost consciousness and was then taken down and placed in the tomb.32 There is, however, no direct support for any of these interpretations in the Quran itself or in the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. One of the most prominent Muslim exegetes, Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī (d. 606/1210), even states that all of these interpretations “are mutually contradictory and incompatible.”33 The crucifixion is thus one aspect of Jesus’ mission regarding which Muslims and Christians may not be able to find common ground. Nonetheless, both agree that God raised him up unto Himself (4:158), and that those who follow Jesus are favored by God over those who do not, as God said, O Jesus, I shall take thee and raise thee unto Me, and purify thee of those who disbelieved, and place those who followed thee above those who disbelieved, until the Day of Resurrection (3:55).
The fundamental difference between the Islamic and Christian understandings of Jesus is that Islam follows the Quran in always seeking to reaffirm the transcendence of the Divine by focusing upon Jesus’ humanity, whereas traditional Christian theology presupposes his divinity, while confirming his humanity. This derives from the different nature of each religious tradition. Islam focuses upon the Absolute, Who is one in and of Himself, beyond all else, while Christianity emphasizes the manifestation of the Absolute in Jesus.
These different emphases are reflected in the different religious, historical, and sociological circumstances under which Jesus and the Prophet Muhammad appeared. Jesus came to a mostly Jewish community that was already well versed in the teachings of Abrahamic monotheism and alert to the dangers of idolatry. The Prophet Muhammad arose within a community still under the influence of polytheism and idol worship. The community to which Jesus preached was accused of forgetting the true meaning and purpose of scripture and focusing upon the minutiae of the law instead of the spirit. The community to which the Prophet Muhammad preached was accused of forgetting completely that there was even such a thing as revelation. (Pp. 1537-1538)
5. Several verses also speak of Jesus as confirming what came before him (3:50; 5:46; 61:6), and Moses is said to confirm what was already with his people, i.e., the Torah (2:41, 89, 91; 4:47).
7. That the people of the Reminder refers to the People of the Book, or more specifically to the believers among the People of the Book, is the position of the majority of the classical exegetes. See, e.g., Muḥammad ibn Jarīr al-Tabarī, Jāmiʿ al-bayānʿan taʾwīl āy al-Qurʾān, ed. Maḥmūd Shākir al-Ḥaristānī, 30 vols. (Beirut: DārIḥ yāʾal-Turāth al-ʿArabī, 1421/2001), 14:130; Abū Muḥammad Farrāʾ al-Baghawī, Maʿālim al-tanzīl, 4 vols. (Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyyah, 1424/2004), 3:58; and Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-Qurṭubī, al-Jāmiʿ li-aḥ kām al-Qurʾ ān, ed. Muḥammad Ibrahīm al-Ḥafnāwī, 10 vols. (Cairo: Dār al-Ḥadīth, 1323/2002), 5:460.
8. Al-Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-bayān, 1:369. Regarding the claim that 2:62 is abrogated by 3:85, the sixth/twelfth-century commentator al-Ṭabrisī says: “This is far [from the mark], because it is not permissible for abrogation to be applied to a report that contains a [Divine] Promise.” Abū ʿ Alī al-Faḍ l al-Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, 10 vols. (Beirut: Muʾassasat al-ʿ Ālamī, 1415/1995), 1:244. (Pp. 1727-1728)
23. Jewish scholarship recognizes that Abraham did not practice the central rites of Judaism, which were revealed on Mt. Sinai, and was not technically a Jew. The term “Judaism” originates as a designation for the tribe that descended from Jacob’s fourth son, Judah. The religion that we now know as Judaism (Yahadut) was first given that name in 2 Maccabees 2:21 and 8:1, written seventeen hundred years after Abraham. The term “Jews” (Yahudim) appears before this, in Esther 8:17, which is still over a millennium after the period in which Abraham is believed to have lived.
30. Al-Bukhārī 60.47 (no. 3468), 65.[3].2 (no. 4590). Another account of this saying reads: “No child is born but that he is pricked by Satan and begins to weep because of the pricking of Satan, except for the son of Mary and his mother” (Muslim 44.40 [no. 6282]). A third version states: “Satan touches every son of Adam on the day when his mother gives birth to him, except for Mary and her son” (Muslim 44.40 [no. 6284]).
31. That the Oneness of God is fundamental to traditional Christianity is clear from the beginning of the Nicene Creed: “We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.” As the third-century church father Tertullian writes: “Father and Son and Spirit are three, however, not in status but in rank, not in substance but in form, not in power but in appearance; they are, however, of one substance and of one status and of one power, because God is one, from whom these ranks and forms and appearances are designated in name as Father and Son and Holy Spirit” (Adversus Praxean, chap. 2; cited in Luke Timothy Johnson, The Creed [New York: Doubleday, 2004], 121).
32. For an examination of the treatment of Jesus and Christianity in the exegetical tradition, see Jane Dammen McAuliffe, Quranic Christians: An Analysis of Classical and Modern Exegesis (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1981); and Mahmoud Ayoub, “Jesus the Son of God: A Study of the Terms Ibn and Walad in the Qurʾān and Tafsīr Tradition,” in Christian-Muslim Encounters, ed. Yvonne Haddad and Wadi Z. Haddad (Gainesville: Univ. Press of Florida, 1995).
33. Muḥammad Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī, al-Tafsīr al-kabīr, 32 vols. (Beirut: DārIḥ yāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿ Arabī, 1422/2001), 4:260. (P. 1729)
FURTHER READING
THE QURAN’S CONFIRMATION OF THE HOLY BIBLE REVISITED
What the Qur’an says about the Bible (overview page)
Does the Quran confirm the Bible and the Canonical Gospels?
The Quran’s Confirmation of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures
AN OPEN CHALLENGE TO MUSLIMS CONCERNING THE BIBLE
The Quranic Affirmation of the Holy Bible Revisited Pt. 1
More on the Islamic Witness to the Incorruptibility of the Holy Bible
The Greek Quran Confirms That Allah Revealed the Holy Bible
NOTES FOR THE LIVESTREAM ON ADNAN RASHID AND HIS MISUSE OF Q. 5:48
Answering Islam Blog 