The Holy Injil

Inspiration
Lisan Al-Arab Defines Inspiration as a language by “the reference, writing, message, to inspire, and hidden words… and all that you delivered to others…”
But legally, there have been several definitions of revelation can be divided into two parts:

1 – According to the inspired content, so the meaning is according to the revelation that is the word of God to his apostles.

2 – Defined as an act of inspiration, and the way it used to be inspired.

The Qur’an prescribe three forms of Inspiration as mentioned in Surat Al- Shura 42: 51 “It is not fitting for a man that Allah should speak to him except by inspiration, or from behind a veil, or by the sending of a messenger to reveal, with Allah’s permission, what Allah wills: for He is Most High, Most Wise”.

1 – The first form of Inspiration or Revelation is the word of God to his Apostles by throwing the idea or breathe it in their hearts and minds, in other words, inspire them, which Al-Qurtubi and Ibn Kathir went to in their interpretation. Vision, as happened to Ibrahim Khalil Allah (Al-Safat 102), which was accepted by Abraham as a revelation from God.

2 – The second form is the word of God to His messengers from behind a veil, and the significance of this story of God talking to Moses, which he could hear the sound but does not see God. This form of revelation was used with Prophet Moses alone. Surah Al-Aaraf 143 Prophet Moses asked to look at God, but God told him that it is impossible.

3 – The third type of Inspiration or Revelation is that God sends a messenger to prophets as he pleases, the messenger here is an angel of God, this how the Prophet of Islam was inspired, which seems to inspiration by Spelling. God sends the messenger in an angelic form or in the form of a man who sees the Prophet, the angel Gabriel used to appear in the form of a man known by Sahabi Dahyah Al-Kalby. Or the angel will descend in an invisible way in form of a jingle bell severe.

The first form describes the biblical form of inspiration, inspiration through throwing the idea or breathe it in the hearts and minds of the prophets and apostles.  “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3: 16-17).

Is the Bible Corrupted or distorted?

God forgives you for blasphemy    إستغفر الله

Al-Hujurat 49:6 “Believers, if an unbeliever brings news to you, be clear, so that you do not afflict people in ignorance. In that case, you would regret your deed.”

“يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِن جَاءَكُمْ فَاسِقٌ بِنَبَإٍ فَتَبَيَّنُوا أَن تُصِيبُوا قَوْمًا بِجَهَالَةٍ فَتُصْبِحُوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلْتُمْ نَادِمِينَ” (سورة الحجرات 49: 6)
Who says that contradict the Qur’an itself… for the Qur’an says:

Al-Anaam 6: 34 “There is no exchanging Allah’s words” “there is none that can alter the words (and decrees) of Allah”  “ولا مبدل لكلمات الله”
Al-Anaam 6: 115 “And the word of your Lord was fulfilled in truth and justice. There is no substituting his words, and he hears all and knows all”
وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ صِدْقًا وَعَدْلًا لَّا مُبَدِّلَ لِكَلِمَاتِهِ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ

Yunus 10: 64 “and there is no exchanging Allah’s words” “لَا تَبْدِيلَ لِكَلِمَاتِ اللَّهِ”

However, some believe that there have been additions and subtractions made to the Bible “the Word of God”.

Al-Hijr 15: 9 “We ourselves revealed the reminder, and we are its protectors.”

“إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ” (الحجر 15: 9)

1- Torah.

The Qur’an mentions the word Torah 18 times and confirms that it was The Word of God. The early Qur’an exegete Tabari referred to the Torah from the Jewish as “the Torah that they possess today”.

Al-Baqara 2:53 “We gave Musa the book and the criterion, so that you may be guided”

وَإِذْ آتَيْنَا مُوسَى الْكِتَابَ وَالْفُرْقَانَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ
Al-Ahqaf 46: 12 “Before it the book of Musa {was} a leader and mercy. This is a confirming book in Arabic language, to warn the wicked and give good news to those who do good deeds.”

وَمِن قَبْلِهِ كِتَابُ مُوسَىٰ إِمَامًا وَرَحْمَةً وَهَٰذَا كِتَابٌ مُّصَدِّقٌ لِّسَانًا عَرَبِيًّا لِّيُنذِرَ الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا وَبُشْرَىٰ لِلْمُحْسِنِينَ

2- Zabur (Pslams)

The Qur’an mentions the word Zabur (Psalms) 3 times. (Al-Nisa 4: 163; Al-Isra’ 17: 55; Al-Anbiya 21: 105).

An-Nisa 4:163 “We inspired you (Muhammad) as we inspired Nuh and the prophets after him. We inspired… and to David We gave the Psalms”. The Qur’an stresses that the Psalms is inspired by God.

Al-Anbiya 21: 105 “We have written in the Zabour after the reminder (Al-Thikr الذكر) My righteous servants will inherit the earth”.

This is a direct quotation from Psalm 37:11 “But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”

3- Injil (the Gospel)

The Qur’an mentions the word Injil (the Gospel) 12 times.

Al-Imran 3:3-5 “He revealed the book to you in truth, confirming what is in his possession, and he revealed the Tawrah and the Injil beforehand as guidance, and he revealed the criterion… Nothing on earth or in heaven is hidden from Allah”

نَزَّلَ عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ بِالْحَقِّ مُصَدِّقًا لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَأَنزَلَ التَّوْرَاةَ وَالْإِنجِيلَ مِن قَبْلُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَأَنزَلَ الْفُرْقَانَ … إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَخْفَىٰ عَلَيْهِ شَيْءٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِي السَّمَاءِ

Al-Maeda 5:46-47 “We made Isa son of Mariam follow in their footsteps, confirming the Tawrah in his possession, and we gave him the Injil, in which is guidance and light, confirming the Tawrah in his possession, as guidance and an admonition to the godly. So let the people of the Injil judge by what Allah has revealed in it. Whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed are unbelievers.”

Al-Maeda 5: 68-69 “People of the book you have no foundation unless you uphold the Tawrah and Injil and what was revealed to you from your Lord … Truly believers, Jews, Sabeans, and Christians – whoever believes in Allah and in the last day and does righteous deeds shall have no fear, nor will they grieve.”

After all what the Qur’an says about the Bible … Who changed the Bible? When? Why? How? And Where?

Some forgets that the Tawrah and the Zabor are the same books that both Jews and Christians are using today, so Jews and Christians should agree to change which is impossible. Some of the Christian paid their lives for their beliefs, and you think they will die for something that is corrupted? That is impossible…

Who is stronger God or human beings? For the Qu’ran says that the Torah, the Psalms, and the Gospel are from Allah and Allah’s words cannot be changed, exchanged, or substituted?

If Allah will allow the Tawrah, Zabor, and Injil to be changed and could not protect them, how would he protect the Qur’an?

Al-Imam Fakhru’d-Din Razi in his commentary says “that the word tahrif means to change, to alter, to turn aside anything from its truth. This meaning is of general application; but whenever the term is used in relation to Sacred Scriptures, it is, in common acceptation, understood to imply a willful corruption of the word of God from its true and original meaning and intent.”

There are two kinds, tahrif lafzi or Tahrif al-lafdh  تحريف لفظي أو تحريف اللفظ(corruption of the text) and tahrif ma’nawi or tahrif al-Ma’na تحريف معنوي أو تحريف المعنى  (corruption of the meaning).

Muhammad himself, together with most of the early commentators of the Qur’an, charged the Jews with tahrif al-ma’na only. They accused them with altering the meaning of their Scriptures by false interpretation, or by suppressing the truth when questioned as to the teaching of the Torah on certain matters. There are many verses that deals with this idea…

Verse # 1: Al-Baqarah 2:75

The first passage of the Qur’an is often quoted by the same people.

‘A party of them heard the word of God, and then, after they had understood it, perverted it, and know that they did.’ Baidawi, in commenting on this passage, says that the perverting had reference to matters,

كَنَعْتِ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَآيَةِ الرَّجْمِ أَوْ تَأْوِيلَهُ فَيُفَسِّرُونَهُ بِمَا يَشْتَهُونَ

‘such as the description of the Prophet of God, or the verse of stoning or the exegesis thereof. For they were in the habit of interpreting it according to their desires.’

Syed Ahmad also in referring to this passage says: ‘The clause, “heard the word of God, and then, after they had understood it, perverted it,” shows that the charge was only verbal in reading not that the written words of the text were changed.’

That this is the real meaning of the passage is obvious from the words of the Prophet himself; for had the Jews altered the actual text of their Scriptures it is inconceivable that he would have appealed to those corrupted Scriptures in order to settle points of controversy between himself and the followers of Moses. The ease with which the Jews could thus mislead and deceive the Muslims can be well understood from the fact recorded by Bukhari that,

روى أبو هريرة قال كان أهل الكتاب يقرأون التوراة بالعبرانية ويفسرونها بالعربية لأهل الإسلام

‘It is related from Abu Huraira that he said, the “People of the Book” used to read the Torah in Hebrew, and explain it to the people of Islam in Arabic.’ What could be easier, under such circumstances, than for the Jews to give a wrong interpretation to the passages quoted.

Yet one more passage must be noticed before we finish. A passage of the Qur’an sometimes quoted to prove the corruption of the Bible is the following:

Al-Baqarah 2:42

وَلاَ تَلْبِسُواْ الْحَقَّ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتَكْتُمُواْ الْحَقَّ وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ

“And clothe not the truth with falsehood, and hide not the truth when ye know it.’

Al-Razi in his famous commentary Al-Kabir writes commenting on this verse:
عن ابن عباس أنهم كانوا يحرفون ظاهر التوراة والإنجيل، وعند المتكلمين هذا ممتنع، لأنهما كانا كتابين بلغا في الشهرة والتواتر إلى حيث يتعذر ذلك فيهما، بل كانوا يكتمون التأويل

‘It is related from Ibn ‘Abbas that they were altering the text of the Torah and Injil, but in the opinion of scholars this was impossible, because those Scriptures were generally known and widely circulated, having been handed down from generation to generation, so that such (alteration) in them was impossible; rather they were hiding the meaning.’

From what has been written above it has been clearly proved that no charge of willfully corrupting the actual text of the Bible was ever made in the Qur’an against the Jews. The only charge made was that of altering the meaning by false exegesis, or of hiding the truth by the concealment of certain passages. With regard to the Christians, there is not a single passage in the whole Qur’an which charges the followers of Jesus even with tahrif al-ma’na. This is a point that is sometimes lost sight of, and one to which we here call the attention of the Muslim reader; for even if it could be shown that certain Jews of Madina had altered their copies of the Torah—a thing impossible of proof, as we have shown—yet who would judge it possible that all the Jews of the whole world had collaborated together to make the same alterations in their copies. Such a presumption supposes incredible credulity on the part of those who suggest it. Moreover, assuming that the Jews did excise from their copies of the Torah certain prophecies concerning the coming of Muhammad, how is it that those prophecies are not found in the copies held by the Christians? It is well known that there has always existed the bitterest enmity between Jews and Christians, so that collusion between them in such a matter as the corruption of the Scriptures was absolutely impossible. The inference is clear: no such corruption has ever taken place.

Verse #2: Al-Imran 3:78

Is sometimes quoted to prove the corruption of the Torah. It is as follows:

وَإِنَّ مِنْهُمْ لَفَرِيقًا يَلْوُونَ أَلْسِنَتَهُم بِالْكِتَابِ لِتَحْسَبُوهُ مِنَ الْكِتَابِ وَمَا هُوَ مِنَ الْكِتَابِ وَيَقُولُونَ هُوَ مِنْ عِندِ اللّهِ وَمَا هُوَ مِنْ عِندِ اللّهِ

‘And some truly are there who torture the Scriptures with their tongues, in order that ye may suppose it to be from the Scripture; yet it is not from the Scripture. They say, “It is from God”; yet it is not from God.’

A careful reading of this passage would alone have been sufficient to convince the most prejudiced that there is here no charge of changing the written words of the Torah. The ‘torturing’ or twisting with the tongue obviously refers to verbal alterations made when reading or reciting the Scripture.
The famous commentator Ibn ‘Abbas in his comment on this passage says:

يقولون على الله الكذب وهم يعلمون أنه ليس ذلك في كتابهم

‘They speak lies against God; and they know that what they say is not in their Book.’

lbn ‘Abbas makes it clear that certain Jews were in the habit of falsely adding to their reading of the Torah certain words or phrases which were not in the Book. which lay open before them. He thus makes it clear that whatever alteration took place was made in the verbal repetition of the Scripture, and not in the written text itself.

The Jalalain in their comment (tafsir) on the passage says,

‘They change it from its place in reading.’

It may be well to quote here the views of the learned author of the Tafsir al-Durr al-Manthur of the next passage:

وأخرج اِبْنُ الْمُنْذِرِ وَابْنُ أَبِي حَاتِمٍ عَنْ وَهْبِ بْنِ مُنَبِّهٍ قَالَ: إِنَّ التَّوْرَاةَ وَالْإِنْجِيلَ كَمَا أَنْزَلَهُمَا اللَّهُ لَمْ يُغَيَّرْ مِنْهُمَا حَرْفٌ وَلَكِنَّهُمْ يَضِلُّونَ بِالتَّحْرِيفِ وَالتَّأْوِيلِ وَالكُتُبٍ كَانُوا يَكْتُبُونَهَا مِنْ عِنْدِ أَنْفُسِهِمْ، وَيَقُولُونَ هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ، فَأَمَّا كُتُبُ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى فَإِنَّهَا مَحْفُوظَةٌ لَا تُحَوَّلُ

‘It is related by Ibnu’l-Mandhar and lbn Abi Hatim from Wahab lbn Munabeh that not a letter has been altered of the Torah and Injil from that which was sent down by God, but they (the Jews) used to lead people astray by changing and altering the meaning. They used also to write books from themselves and then say, “It is from God” when they were not from God. But the (real) Books of God were protected from change, and had not been altered.’

Verse # 3: Al-Imran 3:71

Yet another verse of the Qur’an is sometimes quoted to support the charge of corruption of the Torah. It runs thus,
يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ لِمَ تَلْبِسُونَ الْحَقَّ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتَكْتُمُونَ الْحَقَّ وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ

‘O People of the Book, why clothe ye the truth with falsehood? Why hide the truth?’

The great biographer of the Prophet, Ibn Hisham, has recorded for us the occasion of the ‘sending down’ of this verse, and, in doing so, has entirely refuted the opinion of those who affirm that it teaches the corruption of the Bible. He writes as follows:

‘Abdu’llah bin bin Da’if, ‘Adi bin Zaid and Al-Haritha bin ‘Auf spoke together thus: “Come, let us in the morning believe in what has been sent down on Muhammad and his companions, and let us disbelieve it in the evening in order that we may confuse their religion for them, and that they may act as we act, and turn back from their religion.” Then sent down the Glorious God concerning them the words, “O People of the Book, why clothe ye the truth with falsehood? Why wittingly hide the truth?”’

From these words of Ibn Hisham it is clear that the passage under discussion has no reference whatever to the Bible. It refers to certain lying Jews who, in order to lead the Muslims from their faith, pretended in the morning to believe in Muhammad and the Qur’an, ‘hiding’ the truth of the matter, and ‘clothing’ with falsehood their real intentions, but openly disavowing their belief in him in the evening.

From the remarks of leading Muslim commentators quoted above it is abundantly clear that the Qur’an makes no charge of tahrif al-lafz. All that is proved is that some Jews of Arabia took advantage of the ignorance of their Muslim hearers to mislead them as to the true import of certain passages of their Scriptures. Those Scriptures were written in Hebrew, and had to be translated into Arabic for the comprehension of the Muslims. Thus, every opportunity existed for the verbal corruption or false interpretation of Biblical passages. No charge, however, was ever made that the Jews deleted the verse of stoning from the Torah. Indeed, it is there to the present day: a mute witness to the faithfulness with which the Jews have preserved their Scriptures.

Verse #4: Al-Nisa’ 4:46

A similar charge of shifting words from their places is made against the Jews. It is there written,

مِّنَ الَّذِينَ هَادُواْ يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَن مَّوَاضِعِهِ وَيَقُولُونَ سَمِعْنَا وَعَصَيْنَا وَاسْمَعْ غَيْرَ مُسْمَعٍ وَرَاعِنَا لَيًّا بِأَلْسِنَتِهِمْ وَطَعْنًا فِي الدِّين

‘Among the Jews are those who displace the words and say, “We have heard, and we have not obeyed. Hear thou, but as one that heareth not; and look at us,” perplexing with their tongues, and wounding the faith by their revilings.’

A reference to the standard commentaries of the Qur’an will make it abundantly clear that this verse, like its predecessor, contains no proof whatever of the verbal corruption of the Jewish Scriptures. On the contrary, it is shown that the ‘words’ spoken of are the words of Muhammad! For example, the Jalalain, in their famous commentary of the Qur’an, tell us that, in order to ridicule Muhammad, some of the Jews used to alter certain salutations current among the people. Thus they used to come to the Prophet, and instead of saying السّلام عليك ‘Peace be on thee,’ they used to say, السّام عليك ‘May disaster overtake thee.’ Thus they perplexed with their tongues. Imam Fakhru’d-Din Razi says further that the Jews used to come to Muhammad and ask him certain questions, but, after taking leave of him, they used to alter the words he had taught them.

From these remarks of the commentators it is clear that the verse quoted above to prove the corruption of the Bible has no reference whatever to that Book, but alludes to the Jews’ practice of twisting the words of Muhammad; a striking illustration of the ease with which some ignorant Muslims fall into error regarding the teaching of the Qur’an.

Verse #5: Al-Ma’ida 5:13

One of the verses of the Qur’an most frequently quoted in support of the charge of textual corruption of the Bible reads thus:

Al-Ma’ida 5:13 “Because they broke their covenant we demand them and hardened their hearts. They twist words from their context, and have forgotten some of what they were reminded of…”

يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَوَاضِعِهِ

Tafsir (explication) Tafheem Al-Quran – English: “Then, for their breach of the covenant We cast them away from Our mercy and caused their hearts to harden. (And now they are in such a state that) they pervert the words from their context and thus distort their meaning, and have forgotten a good portion of the teaching they were imparted, and regarding all except a few of them you continue to learn that they committed acts of treachery. Pardon them, then, and overlook their deeds. Surely Allah loves those who do good deeds.” (http://quran.ksu.edu.sa/tafseer/tafheem/sura5-aya13.html#tafheem)

‘They shift the words from their places.’ Bukhari says on this:

“They shift, that is remove; but there is no one who could remove a single word from any Book of God, but they shift, that is change its meaning.’

Tafsir Ibn Kathir “That is to say, they have lost the meaning, and they misused in the verses of Allah, and have explained his book on what he has not revealed or change the meaning, and they carried the meaning on other than its intentions, and they said about it what it didn’t say, God forbid, …  that is: and they left working by it.”

If the Qur’an does not confirm the corruption of the Bible, so who and why this accusation started. Basically, most Muslims:

1. Do not know the history of this accusation.

2. Have never thought through the theological and historical implications of this accusation.

Ibn Hazm was the first Muslim to posit the Doctrine of Biblical Corruption in the 11th century AD.  Thus, for the first four centuries of Islamic history this doctrine did not exist. This is in keeping with a literal grammatical reading of the Quran which claims to be “a confirmation of what was before it and a detailed explanation of the [former] Scripture” (Yunus 10: 37)

However, Ibn Hazm noticed that the Quran does not live up to the standard which it proclaims:

“Ibn-Hazm saw the contradictions between the Qur’an and the Gospels. One obvious example being the Qur’anic text `They slew him not and they crucified him not’ Surah 4:156. `Since the Qur’an must be true,’ Ibn- Hazm argued, `it must be the conflicting Gospel texts that are false. But Muhammad tells us to respect the Gospel. Therefore, the present text must have been falsified by the Christians.’ His argument was not based on historical facts, but purely on his own reasoning and on his wish to safeguard the truth of the Qur’an.

Ibn Hazm argument was built on that nothing could stop him from pursuing this accusation, it seemed the easiest way to attack the opponents. `If we prove the falsehood of their books, they lose the arguments they take from them.’ (IBN HAZM, Kitab al-fasl fi’l-milah wa’l ahwa’l nihal)

This led to his skeptical statement `The Christians lost the revealed Gospel except for a few traces which Allah has left intact as argument against them.’

Later writers took up the same reasoning, enlarged it and embellished it. From then on it has become a fixed ingredient of Muslim apologetics.

If God was either unable or unwilling to keep His Word from corruption, then He is not God. If He was not able to keep His Word from corruption then He is not Omnipotent and thus not God. If He was unwilling to keep His Word from Corruption then His attributes of Veracity and Immutability are compromised and He is not God.

The historical implications of this doctrine are huge. The Bible is by far the most well attested book of antiquity. The manuscript evidence is much stronger than any other ancient writing.

Muslim assertion regarding the textual corruption of the Holy Bible finds little support from the writings of the first Muslims. It is rather evident that the majority of the first Muslim polemicists (if not all of them) believed that the text of the previous scriptures, at least in the case of the Hebrew Bible, remained intact.

The obvious reason why some Muslims of the past such as Ibn Hazm (and many today) argued that the Scriptures have been corrupted is that the message of the Holy Bible is directly opposed to the claims of the Quran. In other words, the Holy Bible and the Quran contradict each other on key, fundamental issues showing that both cannot be correct. They may both be wrong, but they can’t both be from the same God. Hence, the dilemma for the Muslim is quite apparent since to accept the Holy Bible as the preserved Word of God is to reject both the Quran and Muhammad. But to attack the Holy Bible is to discredit the Quran and the earliest Muslim sources which confirm the authority, availability, and authenticity of the previous scriptures.

Ibn Hazm’s accusation of Biblical corruption makes no sense. It should be rejected by the honest Muslim. It was an attempt to answer the critical question: What is the real reason why the Qur’an and the Bible disagree on most major doctrines?

´1. Q. Maryam 19:12, Middle Meccan in -7 AH.
´God says, “`Oh Yahya! (John the Baptist) take hold of the Book with might’: and We gave him wisdom as a child.”
´2. Q. Al-Imran 3:48, 2-3 AH.
´The Angel Gabriel is speaking to Mary about Jesus before Jesus’ birth and says: “And he (God) will teach him the book and wisdom and the Torah and the Gospel”
´3. Q Al-Tahrim 66:12, 7 AH.
´”and Mary (Jesus’ mother)…believed in the words of her Lord and His Books”
´4.  Q. Al-Imran 3:49-50, 2-3 AH.
´Jesus says, “I have come to you…attesting to (the truth of) what is between my hands of the Torah, and to make lawful to you a part of that which is forbidden to you.”
´5. Q. Al-Saff 61:6, from 3 AH.
´”And remember, Jesus, the son of Mary, said: `Oh Children of Israel! I am the apostle of God to you, confirming that which IS between my hands from the Torah…'”
´6. Q. Al-Maida 5:48, 10 AH.
´”And in their footsteps (of Moses and the Jews) We sent Jesus the son of Mary, attesting to (the truth of) the Torah which was between his hands; and We gave him the Gospel – therein is guidance and light and attesting to (the truth of) the Torah which was between his hands: a guidance and an admonition to the righteous.”
´7. Q. Al-Maida 5:110.
´”Then will God say, `O Jesus son of Mary! Recount my favor to you and to your mother when I strengthened you with the Holy Spirit, so that you spoke to the people in childhood and in maturity. Behold! I taught you the Book and Wisdom, the Torah and the Gospel.

´1. Q. Al-Maida 5:113-114, 10 AH.
´”Then will God say, `O Jesus son of Mary! Recount my favor to you… Behold! I taught you the Book and Wisdom, the Torah and the Gospel…
´”And behold! I inspired the disciples (al-hawariyun) to have faith in Me and My apostle (Jesus). They said (to Jesus), `We have faith and (you must) bear witness that we are Muslims (submitted ones).”
´2. Q. Al-Imran 3:52-53, 2-3 AH.
´”When Jesus found unbelief on their part he said, `Who will be my helpers to (the work of) God?’ The disciples said, `We are God’s helpers. We believe in God and (you must) bear witness that we are Muslims (submitted ones). “`Our Lord we believe in what You have revealed and we follow the apostle (Jesus).'”
´3. Q. Al-Saff 61:14, 3 AH.
´”O ye who believe! Be ye helpers of God: as said Jesus the son of Mary to the disciples, `Who will be my helpers for God?’ The Disciples said, `We are God’s helpers!’ Then a portion of the Children of Israel believed, and a portion disbelieved: but We gave power to those who believed against their enemies, and they became the ones that prevailed.”
´4. Q. Al-Hadid 57:26-27, from 8 AH.
´”And We sent Noah and Abraham, and established in their descendants prophecy and the Book: and some of them are rightly guided, but many are rebellious.
´”Then We sent after them our apostles and We sent Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the Gospel; and We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy; and monasticism, they invented it. We did not command it…yet We bestowed on those among them who believed, their due reward, but many of them are rebellious.” cp. 5:85.
´We learn from this verse that although monasticism is not of God, there were true believers among these followers of Jesus who received their “due reward” (in heaven).
´Historically, monasticism started in the 4th century, although certain men, such as Paul of Thebes, lived a separate life as hermits in the third century. St. Anthony of Egypt was the first to organize even a loose group in 305 AD, and in the Sinai, too, monasticism began about the same time.
´5. Q. Al-Kahf 18:10,25, Meccan.
´”Behold, the youths betook themselves to the Cave. They said, `Our Lord! Bestow on us mercy from Yourself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way’ …”
´So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more)…”
´Yusuf Ali, in several notes to his translation of the Qur’an, refers this to 7 young Christian men of Ephesus who, while fleeing from persecution, hid in a cave and did not wake up for 300 yrs. He discusses various dates which terminate between 440 and 450 AD, and says that the Khalifa Wathiq (842-846 AD) sent an expedition to examine and identify the locality. Hamidullah mentions this possibility, but thinks that the passage refers to a time well before Christianity. However, Toufiq Al-Hakim in his play Ahel Al-Kahf describes them clearly as Christians.
´6. Q. Al-Buruj 85:4-9, Early Meccan.
´”Woe to the makers of the pit (of fire), fire supplied with fuel, Behold, they sat over against the (fire), and they witnessed (all) that they were doing against the believers. And they ill-treated them for no other reason than that they believed in God…”

´1. Q. Saba 34:31, Early Meccan.
´”And the unbelievers say, `We will not believe in this Qur’an, nor in that which IS between his (its) hands (the Torah and the Gospel)’…”
´Note: The CAPITAL LETTERS show verbs which are in the present tense for Muhammad and his people. Italics have been used for phrases speaking of groups of Jews or Christians at the time of Muhammad spoken of as believers or unbelievers in order to emphasize that there were always some true believers who would not have changed their own scriptures.
´2. Q. Fatir 35:31, Early Meccan.
´”That which we have revealed to you of the Book is the truth, attesting to (the truth of) that which IS between his (its) hands (the Torah and Gospel)…”
´3. Q. Yunus 10:37, Late Meccan.
´”This Qur’an is not such as can be produced by other than God; but it is a verification of that (the Torah and Gospel) which IS between his (its) hands, and the explanation of the book, wherein there IS no doubt, from the Lord of the worlds.”
´4. Q. Yusuf 12:111, Late Meccan.
´”…It (the Qur’an) is not a fabricated story, but a verification of that (the Torah and Gospel) which IS between his (its) hands, a detailed explanation, a guide and a mercy to the people who believe.”
´5. Q. Al-Anaam 6:154-157, Late Meccan.
´”Then We gave Moses the Book complete as to whatever is excellent, and explaining all things in detail, and a guide and a mercy, that they might believe in the meeting with their Lord. And this (the Qur’an) is a Book which We have revealed, blessed: so follow it and be righteous, that you may receive mercy: lest you should say, `The Book was sent down to two peoples before us, and for our part, we remained unacquainted with all that they learned by assiduous study;’ or lest you should say: `If the Book (Torah and Gospel) had only been sent down to us, we should have followed its guidance better than they.'”
´6. Q. Gafer 40:69-70, Late Meccan.
´”Do you (Muhammad) not see those who dispute concerning the signs of God? How are they turned away? Those who REJECT the Book, and that (book) with which We sent our apostles, they shall know when the collars shall be around their necks, and the chains, they shall be dragged along.”
´7. Q. Al-Ahqaf 46:12, Late Meccan.
´”And before this was the Book of Moses as a guide and a mercy: and this Book is a verification (of it) in the Arabic tongue to warn those who transgress and as glad tidings to the righteous.”
´8. Q. Al-Ahqaf 46:29-30.
´”Behold, We turned towards you a company of Jinns listening to the Qur’an…When the (reading) was finished they returned to their people as warners. They said, `O our people! we have heard a Book revealed after Moses attesting to (the truth of) that which IS between his (its) hands (the Torah) – guiding to the truth and to a straight path.'”
´9. Q. Al-Baqara 2:91, 2 AH.
´”When it is said to them, `Believe in what God has sent down,’ they say, `We believe in what was sent down to us (the Torah)’: yet they reject all besides, even if it be truth attesting to (the truth of) what IS WITH THEM (the Torah)…”
´10. Q. Al-Imran 3:3, 2-3 AH.
´”It is He (God) who sent down to thee the Book in truth, attesting to (the truth of) what IS between its (his) hands (the Bible), and He sent down the Torah and the Gospel before this as a guide to mankind.”
´11. Q. Al-Nisa 4:162-163, 5-6 AH.
´”But those of them (the Jews) that are grounded in knowledge, and the believers, BELIEVE in that which has been revealed to you (Muhammad) and in that which has been revealed before you… We have sent thee inspiration, as We sent it to Noah and the prophets after him, and We sent inspiration to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, and to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron, and Solomon, and to David we gave the Psalms.”
´12. Q. Al-Tauba 9:111, 9 AH.
´”God has bought from the believers their selves and their wealth, and for them is the garden (of Paradise) if they fight in the ways of God: and whether they kill or are killed, the promise of God IS true in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur’an, and who is more faithful to his promise than God?”
´13. Q. Al-Maida 5:48, 10 AH.
´”To you (Muhammad) We revealed the book in truth, attesting to (the truth of) that which IS between his (its) hands from the scripture (the Torah and Gospel), and guarding it (wa muhaiminan `alaihi)…”

The Qur’an describes the Bible with titles that speaks of its importance and validity. Here are some of the Tiles that Bible has in the Qur’an:

• The Scripture                                                                        Al-Imran 3: 3
• Allah’s Book                                                                          Al-Imran 3: 23
• The Word of Allah                                                               Al-Baqara 2: 75
• The Revelation of Allah                                                      Al-Imran 3: 113
• The Criterion                                                                        Al-Baqara 2: 53
• The Reminder                                                                       Al-Anbiya 21: 7
• The Light and Reminder                                                    Al-Anbiya 21: 48
• Guidance and Light                                                             Al-Maida 5: 44, 46
• The Revelation of Compassionate Allah                          Maryam 19: 58

A question that must be asked: is the Word of God created? There has been a lot of dialogue on this important subject. There are two sides: a team that says God’s Word is created, and a side that says that God’s Word is eternal and uncreated. Let’s look at what the Qur’an and the hadith say about this important subject.

The Qur’an did not say that the Holy Injil was corrupted. Christians were not accused of distorting their Injil, and not all of the Qur’anic texts that the critics rely upon to argue for the corruption of the Injil pertain to it. We will discuss some of these texts:

1 – “Do you covet [the hope, O believers], that they would believe for you while a party of them used to hear the words of Allah and then distort the words after they had understood it while they were knowing?” (Al-Baqarah 2:75).

2 – “Among the Jews are those who distort words from their [proper] usages and say, ‘We hear and disobey’ and ‘Hear but be not heard’ and ‘Ra’ina,’ twisting their tongues and defaming the religion. And if they had said [instead], ‘We hear and obey’ and ‘Wait for us [to understand],’ it would have been better for them and more suitable. But Allah has cursed them for their disbelief, so they believe not, except for a few” (Al-Nisa 4:46).

3 – “And Allah had already taken a covenant from the Children of Israel… So for their breaking of the covenant We cursed them and made their hearts hard. They distort words from their [proper] usages and have forgotten a portion of that of which they were reminded…” (Al-Maida 5:12-13).

4 – “O Messenger, let them not grieve you who hasten into disbelief of those who say, ‘We believe’ with their mouths, but their hearts believe not, and from among the Jews. [They are] avid listeners to falsehood, listening to another people who have not come to you. They distort words beyond their [proper] usages, saying ‘If you are given this, take it; but if you are not given it, then beware.’ But he for whom Allah intends fitnah – never will you possess [power to do] for him a thing against Allah. Those are the ones for whom Allah does not intend to purify their hearts. For them in this world is disgrace, and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment” (Al-Maida 5:41).

Here are some of the comments on these verses:

These texts are directed to the Jews. Therefore, the Qur’an says: “and from among the Jews,” so there is no mention of the Christians or the Bible.

Fakhr al-Din al-Razi says in his commentary on Al-Maida 5:13, “The intention of corruption is to cast false resemblance and corrupt interpretations, and to divert the word from its true meaning to a meaning that is false by using verbal tricks, as the people of innovations today do to the verses that do not fit with their beliefs—this is the explanation of corruption.”

Al-Baydawi said in an explanation on (al-Ma’ida 5:41), “They sent them (from Zinya) from a group to Bani Qurethah, to ask the Messenger of Allah, and Ibn Suria judged between them. So, he told him, ‘I ask you by the name of Allah… who handed down this book to you with its teachings of what is lawful and unlawful, do you find in it stoning of the immune?’ He said ‘Yes,’ and they jumped on him, and he said, ‘I was afraid that if I make him out to be a liar, that will bring down the torment.’ Therefore, the Messenger of Allah ordered the adulterers to be stoned at the door of the mosque.”

Al-Tabari said in his commentary (Al-Nisa 4: 45), “The Jews insulted Muhammad with the ugliest words, and said to him, ‘Hear from us deafness’ as someone saying to the man, ‘May God let you not hear.’ The word Ra’ina was interpreted by the attribution of Ibn Wahab as that which is wrong to speak.”

Yusuf Durra Al-Haddad comments on these texts, saying:

1- “First we see that there is no mention of the Christians and the Gospel at all. We challenge anyone to prove in the Qur’an that it was intended for the Christians and their Gospel. How do they accuse the Qur’an by accusing the Christians of distorting the Bible? Or how do they call the Bible corrupted?

2 – “In all places, the Qur’an was referring to a group of Jews, and it is mentioned that the other team do not approve them in their work; there is no room for corruption.

3 – “The corruption that is mentioned is the interpretation of the text, not the alteration, as evidenced by the fact that they are a group of ‘he Scripture follow it, as it ought to be followed’ (Al-Baqarah 2:121). There is no fear of the corruption of the text nor its correct interpretation.

4 – “It is not the whole book that is dealt with, nor the whole Torah, or all of its regulations, but the meaning of the stoning in the Torah, and some commentators add the attribute of Muhammad, ‘the Unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in the Torah and the Gospel in their possession’ (Al-Aaraf 7:157). The whole idea is only about one or two verses of the Torah.”

The question that arises is how the Qur’an attests to a distorted book:

1 – “He has sent down upon you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. And He revealed the Torah and the Gospel” (Al-Imran 3: 3).

2 – “And We sent, following in their footsteps, Jesus, the son of Mary, confirming that which came before him in the Torah; and We gave him the Gospel, in which was guidance and light and confirming that which preceded it of the Torah as guidance and instruction for the righteous” (Al-Maida 5:46).

3 – “And let the People of the Gospel judge by what Allah has revealed therein. And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed – then it is those who are the defiantly disobedient” (Al-Maida 5:47).

4 – “And if only they upheld [the law of] the Torah, the Gospel, and what has been revealed to them from their Lord, they would have consumed [provision] from above them and from beneath their feet. Among them are a moderate community, but many of them – evil is that which they do” (Al-Maida 5:66).

5 – “Say, O People of the Scripture, you are [standing] on nothing until you uphold [the law of] the Torah, the Gospel, and what has been revealed to you from your Lord” (Al-Maida 5:68)

This is a widely asked question, and many have written about this important subject. But I want to share what God says in the Bible, that His Word cannot be changed, distorted or altered. Let us see what the Bible says about this:

• “Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you.” (Tawrat, Deuteronomy 4:2)
• “See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from it.” (Tawrat, Deuteronomy 12: 32)
• “After Moses finished writing in a book the words of this law from beginning to end, he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord: Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you.” (Tawrat, Deuteronomy 31: 24-26)
• “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” (Tawrat, Joshua 1: 8)
• “The Spirit of the Lord spoke through me; His word was on my tongue.” (Tawrat, 2 Samuel 23: 2)
• “I will not violate my covenant or alter what my lips have uttered.” (Zabour – Psalm 89: 34)
• “Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.” (Tawrat, Proverbs 30: 5-6)
• “Look in the scroll of the Lord and read: None of these will be missing, not one will lack her mate. For it is his mouth that has given the order, and his Spirit will gather them together.” (Tawrat, Isaiah 34: 16)
• “A voice says, “Cry out.” And I said, “What shall I cry?” “All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Tawrat, Isaiah 40: 6-8)
• “As for me, this is my covenant with them, says the Lord. “My Spirit, who is on you, will not depart from you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will always be on your lips, on the lips of your children and on the lips of their descendants—from this time on and forever,” says the Lord.” (Tawrat, Isaiah 59: 21)
• “The word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew[a] you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord. Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth.” (Tawrat, Jeremiah 1: 4-9)
• “The Lord said to me, You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.” (Tawrat, Jeremiah 1: 12)
• “Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now.” (Tawrat, Jeremiah 36: 2)
• Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.” (Tawrat, Ezekiel 33: 7)
• “I spoke to the prophets, gave them many visions and told parables through them.” (Tawrat, Hosea 12: 10)
• “For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” (Injil, Matthew 5: 18)
• “For it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” (Injil, Matthew 10: 20)
• “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” (Injil, Matthew 24: 35)
• “But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen.” (Injil, Acts 26: 22)
• “What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.” (Injil, 1 Corinthians 2: 12-13)
• “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (Injil, 2 Timothy 3: 16-17)
• “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.” (Injil, 1 Peter 1: 23-25)
• “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (Injil, 2 Peter 1: 20-21)
• “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.” (Injil, Revelation 22: 18-19)

After all this, can anyone say to distort, alter or change the Bible? No way. How when God Almighty says, “I will not violate my covenant or alter what my lips have uttered,” and He says, “for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled,” He confirms that, “until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”

How can the Bible be distorted, changed or changed after God commanded: “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 11: 18-20)

Can the words of God be changed, corrupted or distort? Let us hear what the Qur’an says:

“And recite, [O Muhammad], what has been revealed to you of the Book of your Lord. There is no changer of His words” (Al-Kahf 18:27). The word that is used to refer to the book refers to the Qur’an, but the word (for His Words) refers to the heavenly books and includes the Bible because it is the Word of God, and accordingly to this there is no substitute for the words of the Bible Al-Baydawi  in his interpretation says: “No changer of his words, no one can change or distort it other than Him” .

“For them are good tidings in the worldly life and in the Hereafter. No change is there in the words of Allah . That is what is the great attainment.” (Yunus 10: 64) Al-Baydawi said: “No change is made to His words, and no difference is made to his promises.”

“And certainly were messengers denied before you, but they were patient over [the effects of] denial, and they were harmed until Our victory came to them. And none can alter the words of Allah . And there has certainly come to you some information about the [previous] messengers.” (Al-An’am 6:34) Again in verse 115, “And the word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. None can alter His words, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing.” In Al-Baydawi interpretation of the last verse, it is mentioned that the Bible is distorted, but does not mean the distortion that the general Muslims say and we will address this later.

Whoever claims that the Bible is distorted in its texts today, since it was not true in the time of Muhammad is coming up with a false accusation and goes contrary to the explicit verses of the Qur’an that bear witness that the right does not come falsehood from his hands or behind him, because one of the most important purposes of the Qur’an that it came to certifies and preserves the Bible. How come that the Qur’an can testify that the Bible is true and inspired by God and guidance to the people, and then returns to  claim that it was changed and lost its credibility, because if this is true the Qur’an has contradicted itself.

It was stated in Mishkat Al-Masbih that Omar said: “Allah sent Muhammad with truth and revealed the book to him, so God revealed the verse of stoning. The Messenger of Allah did it and we stoned after him. Stoning in the Book of Allah decried on the one who committed adultery if he is immune from men and women. If the evidence or pregnancy or a confession.” Agreed upon from the first chapter of the Book of Borders, but when Zaid bin Thabit collected the Qur’an deleted this verse so as not to say that Omar increased the Qur’an.” These are dangerous words, if Omar ratified in what he narrated the distortion of speech on its positions as mentioned in the Qur’an in Surat Al-Maida 5:45 is a fact in the Qur’an, not in the Torah?

It is impossible, given the fact that to believe in the Qur’an, and to claim that the Bible is correct, and “not a substitute for the words of God.”

Today, many voices argue that the Holy Scriptures that the Christians have today are different from the Scriptures at the time of Muhammed 571-632 AD. By this, they claim that the Christian Scriptures are corrupted and distorted. Their argument is built on the teaching that God has given His prophet Moses the Torah, which is one book, and it is not the five first books of the Old Testament. Also, God has given Jesus One Book, the Injil, but today we see four Gospels and then the rest of the New Testament. Therefore, this is not what is mentioned in the Qur’an.

Someone wrote, “Nowhere within the text of the Bible is the Bible called ‘The Bible’. The word Bible itself was invented to represent a collection of books.” Others in discussion argue, “The Qur’anic passages which testify to the Torah, and the Injil and the Psalms, do not refer to what Christians now call the Bible.” (Asadi, Islam & Christianity: Conflict or Conciliation?, p.2)

It seems that they forgot that the Qur’an is full of foreign terms and names that comes from Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac and Greek origins, such as Tawrat, Furqan, Musa, Isa, Injil and so on. Also, they forgot that the Qur’an calls the Holy Scripture (Al-Kitab) the Book, and the believers in the Old Testament and the New Testament ( أهل الكتاب Ahl Al-Kitab) the People of the Book. To which Book is the Qur’an referring to? In fact, Isa Al-Masih (His peace be upon us) mentions this title many times in the Injil,

“Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book” (John 20:30).

“It is written in the Book of Psalms…” (Acts 1:20)

“But God turned away from them and gave them over to the worship of the sun, moon and stars. This agrees with what is written in the book of the Prophets” (Acts 7:42)

Here I should explain what the word Bible means. The English word “Bible” is from the Greek word “Byblos” and the Latin “biblia” and both mean “books.” In time, “biblia” came to describe various writings, scrolls, books, and eventually the collection of the 66 books of the Old Testament and New Testament that make up – the Holy Bible.

The Qur’an repeatedly speaks of the Book, the Bible; I will share some of the verses in the second Sura of the Qur’an Al-Baqara:

“And recall that We gave Moses the Scripture (Al-Kitab, the Book) and the Criterion (Al-Furqan), so that you may be guided.” (Q. 2: 53)

“We gave Moses the Scripture (Al-Kitab, the Book), and sent a succession of messengers after him. And We gave Jesus son of Mary the clear proofs, and We supported him with the Holy Spirit. Is it that whenever a messenger comes to you with anything your souls do not desire, you grew arrogant, calling some impostors, and killing others?” (Q. 2: 87).

“Those to whom We have given the Scripture (Al-Kitab, the Book) follow it, as it ought to be followed—these believe in it. But as for those who reject it—these are the losers.” (Q. 2: 121).

When we read the Qur’an we find explicit and direct references to the Injil. But the Qur’an uses a specific pattern when mentioning the Injil. Here are all the verses that mention the Bible in the Qur’an.

“He has sent down upon you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. And He revealed the Tawrat and the Injil. Before, as guidance for the people. And He revealed the Qur’an. Indeed, those who disbelieve in the verses of Allah will have a severe punishment, and Allah is exalted in Might, the Owner of Retribution.” (Al-Imran 3: 3-4)

“And He will teach him writing and wisdom and the Tawrat and the Injil” (Al-Imran 3: 48)

“O People of the Scripture, why do you argue about Abraham while the Tawrat and the Injil were not revealed until after him? Then will you not reason?” (Al-Imran 3: 65)

“And We sent, following in their footsteps, Jesus, the son of Mary, confirming that which came before him in the Tawrat; and We gave him the Injil, in which was guidance and light and confirming that which preceded it of the Torah as guidance and instruction for the righteous.” (Al-Maida 5: 46)

“And if only they upheld [the law of] the Tawrat, the Injil, and what has been revealed to them from their Lord, they would have consumed [provision] from above them and from beneath their feet. Among them are a moderate community, but many of them – evil is that which they do.” (Al-Maida 5: 66)

“Say, “O People of the Scripture, you are [standing] on nothing until you uphold [the law of] the Tawrat, the Injill, and what has been revealed to you from your Lord. And that which has been revealed to you from your Lord will surely increase many of them in transgression and disbelief. So do not grieve over the disbelieving people.” (Al-Maida 5: 68)

“…and [remember] when I taught you writing and wisdom and the Tawrat and the Injill…” (Al-Maida 5: 110)

“…[It is] a true promise [binding] upon Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur’an.” (Al-Tawba 9: 111)

“…That is their description in the Torah. And their description in the Gospel is as a plant which produces its offshoots and strengthens them so they grow firm and stand upon their stalks…” (Al-Fath 48: 29)

We find a pattern in all the verses that refer to the Bible in the Koran is that the ‘Injil’ is not mentioned alone, but is preceded by mentioning of the Tawrat. But there is only one exception to this pattern.

“Then We sent following their footsteps Our messengers and followed [them] with Jesus, the son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel. And We placed in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy…” (Al-Hadid 57: 27)

Nevertheless, the pattern is still the same, because where these prophets are mentioned? The answer is in the Tawrat.

The question that arises: Why is this Qur’anic style in mentioning the Tawrat and the Injil? Is there something important that the Qur’an wants to guide us to consider? Yes, there is something important, as if the Qur’an tells us that we cannot understand the Injil without studying the Tawrat, in the sametime, the Tawrat cannot be understood without knowing the full picture of the Injil. In fact, the message of the Tawrat and the Injil is one. The Tawrat and the Injil are a sign from God to guide us to the straight path.

Isa Al-Masih (His peace be upon us) said, “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me” (The Injil, John 5:39). He encourages us (His peace be upon us) to search the Tawrat, for the Tawrat testify of Him, and He stress that when He said, “Then He said to them, These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms (the Zabour) concerning Me” (The Injil, Luke 24:44). I say to you, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled” (Injil, Matthew 5: 17-18).

The Injil teaches that “All Scriptures (the Tawrat, the Prophets, the Psalms (Zabour), and the Injil) is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (The Injil, 2 Timothy 3:16-17). “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” (The Injil, 2 Peter 1: 19-21). This leaves no doubt that the Tawrat and the Injil are the Thikr (Remainder), the Furkan,  Al-Lawh Al-Mahfoz (Preserved Book), and the (Kalimatu Allah) Word of God protected from each alteration, distortion, and change for they are one of the signs from God.