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The major point of "Christians and the Quran" is to show that the Quran creates difficulties for itself when it contradicts the Bible. Why look at contradictions if God gave each group of people different revelations (Sura 5:48)? The answer is, both Christianity and Islam claim to be the only way (John 14:6 and Sura 3:85) and if they contradict each other they cannot both be the only way. Sura 10:94, "If you have any doubt regarding what is revealed to you from your Lord, then ask those who read the previous scripture."
Most Important Issue: Has The Bible been changed?
Key Point #1: The Quran
strongly Supports The Bible. Many Suras (like 2:97, 2:136,
3:3, 4:136, 4:163, 5:43-8, 6:92, 10:94, 12:111, 37:117, 41:43 and others,
see *Bible support from Quran*)
strongly support the Bible. From Sura 5:44 to Sura 5:47 the Quran
talks about the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus). Three times
in this context the Quran says something like, "And whoever judges not
by that which GOD has sent down, it is [they] who are the disbelieves".
The "scripture that was sent down" in these passages is not referring to
the Quran because only after these passages (in 5:48) does the Quran talk
about its own roll to "confirm the previous scriptures", that being the
Law and Gospel.
Why does to Quran encourage us to read the Bible?
First, the Bible contains the
truth; Sura 29:46, "We believe in what was revealed to us and in what was
revealed to you."
Second, the Quran says that the
Bible contains prophecies about Muhammad. No such Bible passage is
quoted in the Quran. If you look at *Muhammad
in The Bible* you will find out that "Muhammad" is NOT in the Bible.
Some Muslims find Muhammad in the Gospel of Barnabas but see *Problems
in the Gospel of Barnabas* to see how we know that the Gospel of Barnabas
is a Medieval European forgery. It also contradicts the Quran (It
calls Muhammad the Messiah).
Key Point #2: The Quran
Supports modern Bibles. Was the Bible changed before or after
Muhammad? If it was changed before, why does God tell all three groups
(Christians, Jews and Muslims) to read the Bible (Sura 5:47 for Christians,
Sura 5:43 for the Jews and Sura 10:94 for Muhammad)?
We must conclude that the Bible
(if changed) was corrupted after Muhammad. We should trust current
translations (like NIV and NASB) because they are based upon manuscripts
that predate Muhammad. The Codex Siniaticus (whole NT from 350 A.D.),
the Codex Alexandrinas (almost entire NT from 450 A.D.) manuscripts (both
in the British Museum in London) as well as the Codex Vaticanus (From Matthew
to Hebrews 9:14; dated around 325-350 A.D.) are some examples.
Where is the "original gospel",
if it is not in the Bible we have today? The only "gospel" we have
that is even close to the "gospel" that the Quran talks about is the Gospel
of Barnabas. The Gospel of Barnabas says that Muhammad is the Messiah
and Jesus is the Christ! This is a contradiction for Christ is Messiah
in Greek. Read *Problems in the
Gospel of Barnabas* for more.
Key Point #3: The Preservation
System. There is an amazing check-and-balance system in the
Bible. Both the Old and New Testaments support each other.
The New Testament contains over 180 quotes, and a multitude of references
to the OT. These quotes act as a preservative by not allowing the
Christians or Jews to change their Scripture without creating a contradiction
between the two. Even Sura 5:46 (We gave [Jesus] the Gospel, containing
guidance and light, and confirming the previous scriptures) supports this.
Remember that the Christians and
Jews were not friends at this time (Sura 2:113) so a collaboration to change
both Testaments was impossible. How could they agree to change every
Bible (in every language and nation) in the same way?
Key Point #4: Why was it
changed? If the Bible had been changed we would tend to see
things that would be more "pleasing" and "attractive" to our human desire.
The Quran says that in heaven there are mates who are pure, holy (4:57),
good, beautiful (55:70), fair with large beautiful eyes (52:20), virgin
with a modest gaze (55:56), voluptuous (78:33), perpetually young (76:19)
and of equal age (38:52). If this is what the Bible originally had,
why would self-seeking manipulators who wanted to make Christianity look
better say that there is "no marriage at the resurrection" (Matthew 22:30,
Mark 12:25 and Luke 20:35)? Also the entire Old Testament (Key Point
#3) contains nothing at all about these heavenly spouses.
Ask yourself the following questions:
Why do we see the Quran supporting the Bible again and again (See *Bible
support from Quran*)?
Is the Bible the standard by which to measure the Quran (Sura 10:94)?
Why should we "ask those who read the previous scripture" (21:7) if
they are reading corrupted scripture?
If the scripture has been corrupted, does this make the Quran "out
of date" by telling us to read something that no longer exists (at least
in pure form)? Sura 5:47 says that the Christians must follow the
Gospel.
How did God allow the Bible (a scripture in which we are required to
believe, Sura 4:136) to be corrupted?
Why did God give us some scripture, then later contradict it with new
scripture while at the same time having the new scripture tell us to read
the former (contradictory) scripture?
While looking at each of the following 3 "Parts", remember to keep
all 5 Key Points in mind.
(Whenever you see "NT supported and confirmed by OT" remember Key Point
#3 !!! An Example: Sura 6:74 calls Abraham's father Azar, instead
of Terah (Genesis 11:26, supported and confirmed by NT Luke 3:34)
Part 1: Many teachings in the Quran are contradicted by the Bible.
Part 2: The Crucifixion of Jesus and The Trinity.
Part 3: The People and Events in the Bible vs. The People and Events
in the Quran.
Part 1: Many teachings in the Quran are contradicted by the Bible.
(Topic 1) Christian Doctrine: Salvation, divorce, oaths, charities,
polygamy, fighting, divisions among believers and creation.
(Topic 2) Jewish Law: The Messiah, Ezra, unclean food and unclean
animals.
Christian Doctrine
Sura 16:32 "Enter Paradise as a reward for your works."
The Bible says that salvation is not by works (Galatians 3:3, Ephesians
2:8-9) nor has salvation ever been by works (Romans 4:1-3, 11, 13 Supported
by OT Genesis 15:6) because all have fallen short (Romans 3:23 supported
by OT 1st Kings 8:46 and the independent 2nd Chronicles 6:36).
Matthew 19:3-9 "Some Pharisees asked (Jesus), 'Is it lawful for a man
to divorce his wife for any and every reason?' 'Haven't you
read,' Jesus replied, 'that in the beginning the Creator 'made them male
and female,' and said, '...a man will...be united to his wife, and the
two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore
what God has joined together, let man not separate....I tell you that anyone
who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another
woman commits adultery."
This teaching is strongly supported by and even quoted from the Old
Testament (Genesis 1:27 and 2:24).
The Quran says that you can divorce
your wife (Suras 2:226-32) for reasons other than marital unfaithfulness,
in fact Muhammad was allowed to divorce his wives for gossiping (Sura 66:5).
Matthew 5:34 "But I tell you do not swear [on oath] at all..."
[Now we know that the people in
the Old Testament were allowed to swear oaths (Jesus was aware of this
see Matthew 5:33) but just like divorce, that was allowed in the past because
the Jews had hard hearts (Matthew 19:7-8), oaths too are now illegal.
We know that "the prophet like Moses" (Deuteronomy 18:18-9) will tell us
what laws to follow. The "Prophet like Moses" is Jesus and not Muhammad
(See Moses and Jesus) because the Prophet
"from among your brothers" means that he is a Jew, for in the context of
Deuteronomy 17:15 ("he must be from among your own
brothers...not
one who is not a brother Israelite") "brother" cannot mean anybody
but a Jew.]
You must ask yourself, "Why did
the 'Bible manipulators' forge this law?" Manipulators would love
to be able to swear by God that they are telling the truth.
Jesus tells us not to swear by
Heaven, Earth or the City of Jerusalem (Matthew 5:34-5)."
The Quran swears by the galaxies (81:15-6), position of the stars (56:75),
the moon (74:32), the Earth itself (86:12), "this town" (90:1),
Mecca (95:3) and many other things. Jesus continues talking about
oaths in Matthew 5:37 saying, "Let your Yes be Yes and your No be No, anything
beyond this comes from the evil one."
Sura 2:271 "If you declare your charities, they are still good.
But if you keep them anonymous, and give them to the poor, it is better
for you, and remits more of your sins."
Matthew 6:2 "So when you give
to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do..."
Hebrews 9:22 "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness
of sins." This is supported and confirmed by The Old Testament (Leviticus
17:11). Also Hebrews 10:4 says, "...it is impossible for the blood
of bulls and goats to take away sins" therefore how could alms take away
sins?
The Bible talks about polygamy, but does it ever condone polygamy for
any reason?
Genesis 30:1,8 and 1st Samuel 1:2-7 tell us of the struggle and pain
women have suffered by being one of several wives. 1st Kings 11:3-4
says that Solomon was led astray by his many wives. In the NT (1st
Timothy 3:2,12) Paul tells us that a church leader must be "the husband
of but one wife". Changes in the Scripture would lead to more permissive
laws not less.
Some say, "God used polygamy to
populate the dangerously under-populated Earth". I would ask, "Why
did Adam and Noah, who lived in two of the most underpopulated times in
history, have just one wife each? Also Noah's three sons had only
one wife each."
I ask, "If God intended polygamy,
why is there a one to one birth ratio of men to women?" Some would
answer, "Men die in war thus making some women unable to find a husband."
I would say, "Even with wars the ratio of men to women remains so close
that even two women per man would be too much. We would need to have
half of all men die in war for two-wife families to be valid. Or
in the case of four wives we would need 75% of all men to die (with almost
no deaths among women) for this argument to be valid!"
Some say, "With the lack of rich
men, polygamy can be used by women so that they can find a husband who
is able to support them." I would answer, "God will provide for the
poor family (Sura 17:31). It is also God's will that the rich use
their money to help the poor family."
Sura 9:111 "...Thus, they fight in the cause of GOD, killing
and getting killed. Such is His truthful pledge in the Torah, the
Gospel,
and the Quran."
9:113 "Neither the prophet, nor those who believe shall ask forgiveness
for the idol worshipers, even if they were their nearest of kin,
once they realize that they are destined for Hell."
60:1 "You who believe, you shall not befriend My enemies and your enemies,
extending love and friendship to them....If you struggle in My cause, seeking
My blessings, how can you secretly love them?"
60:4 "A good example was set down by Abraham, who said, We denounce
you [unbelievers], and you will see hostility and hatred from us forever
unless you believe in GOD alone."
66:9 "O [Muhammad], strive hard against the disbelieves and the hypocrites
and be stern with them."
The Quran has "killing" as a pledge
in the Gospel and believers not willing to "love their enemies".
Is Abraham's, "you will see nothing from us except hostility and hatred"
a "good example"?
Look at The Old Testament: David did ask God to harm his military
enemies but not his "personal" enemies. Psalms 35:12-15 "[My
enemies] repay me evil for good...Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth
and humbled myself with fasting...I went about mourning as though for my
friend or brother. I bowed my head in grief as though weeping for
my mother. But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee".
Confirmed and supported in The New Testament: Matthew 5:44 Jesus
said, "Love your enemies, Pray for those who persecute you". This
was practiced by Jesus in Luke 23:33-34, "When they came to the place called
the Skull, there they crucified him... Jesus said, Father, forgive them,
for they do not know what they are doing." Paul's "good example"
is, "When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;
when we are slandered, we answer kindly" (1st Corinthians 4:12-13).
Sura 5:48 "For each of you, We have decreed laws and different
rites. Had GOD willed, He could have made you one congregation.
But He thus puts you to the test through the revelations He has given each
of you."
Bible, John 10:16 "...and
there shall be one flock and one shepherd." Paul said in 1st Corinthians
1:10-3, "I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions
among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.
What I mean is this: One of you says, I follow Paul; another, I follow
Apollos; another, I follow Cephas; still another, I follow Christ.
Is Christ divided?"
The moral application of absolute
truth is the best support for the Bible's view. How could God "decree
laws and different rites" if Islam is the only way? Is God divided?
What would people gain by changing the creation account in the Bible? The order of creation in Sura 41:9-12 is nothing like the account found in Genesis chapter 1. How did they change this part if it is the first (and maybe most memorized) part of the Old Testament?
Jewish Law
Sura 4:157 "The Jews are condemned for claiming that they killed
the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of GOD."
The Jews did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah or the messenger of
God.
Sura 9:30 "The Jews say, Ezra is the son of God". This cannot be found in the Jewish Scriptures nor in commentaries like the Talmud.
Sura 6:146 "And to those who were Jews We made unlawful...[list
of unclean food]...this was a punishment We gave them on account of
their rebellion, and We are surely truthful". And Sura 4:160
"Due to their transgressions, We prohibited for the Jews good foods
that used to be lawful for them"
These verses claim that some good
things were forbidden to the Jews, because of their disobedience.
Nothing like that can be found in the Torah or in any other part of the
Jewish scriptures.
In fact, it is exactly the other way around...
Matthew 19:7-8 "Why then, did Moses command that a man give his wife
a certificate of divorce and send her away? Jesus said, Moses permitted
you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard." Jesus says
that because they could not follow the commandments of God, who hates divorce,
it was allowed for them (under certain conditions) because their hearts
were so hard. The law was not made harder but easier. This
is the exact opposite of the claim in the Quran.
Solomon sends a talking hoopoe bird to the Queen of Sheba (Sura 27:20-8). The hoopoe is an unclean bird (Leviticus 11:19) and this is supported by the fact that it is very unlikely that the Jews forged a law against themselves, knowing how difficult it is to deal with "unclean" animals (see Leviticus 11:32-8).
Part 2: The Crucifixion of Jesus and The Trinity.
(Topic 1) Crucifixion of Jesus: Was it a trick?
(Topic 2) Third Member of The Trinity according to the Quran: Holy
Spirit or Mary?
The Crucifixion of Jesus
Sura 5:111 "Recall that I [God] inspired the disciples: You shall believe
in Me and My messenger [Jesus]."
Sura 4:159 "Everyone among the people of the scripture was required
to believe in him [Jesus]."
Sura 4:157 says that the people were "made to think" that Jesus
was crucified and killed. Then almost 600 years later God sends the
Quran and blames the Christians for being "ignorant and full of doubt".
Was "making the Christians think" that Jesus was crucified and killed,
when he was not, a 600 year long lie to the God-inspired disciples and
Christians?
A more full explanation of the "made to think" is found in the gospel of Barnabas but the Gospel of Barnabas also says that Muhammad is the Messiah (for more see *Problems in the Gospel of Barnabas*).
Third Member of The Trinity according to the Quran: Holy Spirit
or Mary?
Sura 2:97 says that Gabriel brings down the revelations to Muhammad,
while Sura 16:102 says it is the holy spirit. Therefore Muslims say
that "holy spirit" is just another name for Gabriel. Thus in the
Quran The Holy Spirit is not seen as part of the Trinity but as the Angel
Gabriel. One more application of this is that Muhammad cannot be
the "Holy Spirit" and Comforter who was promised by Jesus in the Book of
John because the Muslim "holy spirit" cannot be both, Gabriel and Muhammad.
See also *Muhammad in The Bible*.
Sura 5:116 "O Jesus, son of Mary, did you say to the people, make me and my mother idols beside God?"
Sura 5:73 talks about the Trinity, but who are the members? Two verses after that, Sura 5:75 says "The Messiah, son of Mary, is no more than a messenger like the messengers before him, and his mother was a saint. Both of them used to eat the food." In this context the two extra people of the "trinity" talked about in Sura 5:73 seem to be Jesus and Mary. The Quran's argument that "both of them used to eat the food" to trying to show that "Mary is just a saint and not God". This is because her food-eating is not trying to prove her saintliness it trying to disprove her being God. Note how it says "BOTH of THEM ate food", this is making one single point about the nature of BOTH Jesus AND Mary.
This misinterpretation of the Trinity may have come from the Mary-worshipping cult (the Choloridians) who lived in Arabia at that time. This mistake could also be from Muhammad's belief that Christians say, "God had a child with his wife" (See Suras 6:101 and 72:3).
Part 3: The People and Events in the Bible vs. The People and
Events in the Quran.
We will look at: Mary the Mother of Jesus, Infant Jesus, Abraham,
Ishmael, Noah and Pharaoh.
Mary the Mother of Jesus
Sura 19:27-8 "O Mary! Truly a strange thing you have brought! O sister
of Aaron...".
Mary was from the tribe of Judah
(Luke 3:33 support from OT Isaiah 9:7 says mother of Messiah is from David's
line of Judah) while Aaron, and his sister Miriam were Levites (Exodus
2:1). Miriam and Mary have the same Arabic name so if all you knew
was a collection of Bible stories you might think that they were the same
person.
Infant Jesus
In Suras 3:43 and 5:110 the infant Jesus speaks from the crib (this
is most clear in Sura 19:29-30).
The early Christians loved stories
about the early (personal) life of Jesus. If the "original Gospel"
contained everything that the Quran does now, why did the people change
the "original gospel" to a "corrupted gospel" that lacked stories of Jesus'
early life? Jesus also made clay birds cone to life. These
early life stories are more like the ones found in false gospels that lack
authority or credibility.
Abraham
Sura 21:60 "They said: We heard of a youth threaten them: He is called
Abraham.".
God changed his name from Abram
to Abraham when he was 99 years old (Genesis 17:1, 5). Thus in his
youth he was called Abram not Abraham. "Abraham" means "father of
many" and with this in mind, Romans 4:17-9 of the New Testament supports
and confirms this to be true.
Ishmael
Sura 2:133 "We will worship your God; the God of your fathers Abraham,
Ismail,
and Isaac; the one God." This title of God is used in the Bible (Exodus
3:6, Moses and the burning bush) as "the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac
and the God of Jacob". This is quoted, and thus preserved (Key Point
#4), by the New Testament in Mark 12:26 "have you not read in the book
of Moses, in the account of the [burning] bush, how God said to him, 'I
am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?".
This title of God is also one of the *Problems
in the Gospel of Barnabas*
37:107 "We ransomed (Ismail) by substituting an animal sacrifice."
Genesis 22:9 says it was Isaac
on the alter (this is confirmed and supported by the NT, Hebrews 11:17).
Isaac was the covenant son (Genesis 17:18-21 confirmed by Galatians 4:23)
and therefore a more symbolic "sacrifice" (Hebrews 11:18).
4:163 "And We inspired Abraham, Ismail, Isaac..."
In Genesis 21:10-12 Sarah says
that Ishmael will never share in the inheritance with Isaac. Abraham's
offspring will be reckoned through Isaac (Confirmed and supported by the
New Testament, Galatians 4:30 and Romans 9:7).
Noah
The conversation in Sura 11:42-43 was impossible. If you ever
have been at sea when the waves are "towering like mountains" then you
know how loud it is. This type of conversation, even when shouting
is absolutely impossible. The Ark was afloat while Noah's son seems
to be standing on dry land talking to his father.
Hebrew for "Ark" in Genesis 6:14 is "tebah" (Strong's Ref. # 8392) and it means "box". The Greek for "Ark" in Matthew 24:38 is "kibotos" (Strong's Ref. # 2787) and it also means "box". According to Sura 54:13 Noah's Ark is a raft made of logs and ropes (See Footnote from "Quran's Translation (QT)" by Monotheist Productions International). According to Genesis 6:15 the Ark was a three-dimensional box. If the flood waves were "towering like mountains" (Sura 11:42) was it safe to be on a raft?
Was Noah's family saved from the flood? Noah's son died in the flood in Sura11:42-3. The Old Testament (Genesis 7:7) states that Noah and his family (eight in all) were saved. This is supported and confirmed by the New Testament (Hebrews 11:7) and 2nd Peter 2:5 that says "seven people were saved with Noah.". Also Genesis chapter 10 (The Table of Nations) starts out with, "This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah's sons who themselves had sons after the flood". The rest of this chapter records a genealogy for each son.
Pharaoh
Crucifixion was not used by the Pharaoh of Moses' day (Suras 7:124
and 26:49). It was invented hundreds of years later by the Persians.
"[The earliest recording of a crucifixion was] in 519 BC [when] Darius
I, king of Persia, crucified 3,000 political opponents in Babylon" (Encyclopedia
Britannica, 1993, Vol. 3, page 762). To be "hung on a tree" by Pharaoh
was to be impaled (Genesis 40:19 and NIV Bible text note). He was
decapitated so there would be no reason to use a torture method like crucifixion.
Sura 7:133 "We sent upon [the Egyptians] the flood, the locusts,
the lice, the frogs, and the blood - profound signs." Sura 17:101,
"We supported Moses with nine profound miracles - ask the Children of Israel."
If you do "ask the Children of
Israel" you will find out that the symbolism of the plagues is lost when
taken out of order and fragmented (complete list of 10 plagues found in
Exodus 7:14-11:10 and this number is not including signs showed to Pharaoh).
What "flood" is the Quran talking about? The Nile flood was good
for the Egyptian farmers and the Red Sea did not flood, it just returned
to a normal level.