BELIEF IN THE REVEALED BOOKS
The perpetuity of God’s Guidance
IT is a matter of Islamic belief that God, in His mercy, has sent
prophet after prophet to lead people forth from darkness to light.
The belief in all of God’s revealed books forms an integral part of
Islamic faith.
These divine books commanded justice in everything, and exhorted
men to repent and mend their ways.
The Quran describes Torah as Furqan (the Discriminator between right
and wrong). It says: “We gave Moses and Aaron the criterion of right and
wrong and a light and Reminder for the righteous ( 21: 48 ). Furqan means
the ideological standard which enables man to distinguish between
Truth and falsehood. Light means divine guidance, which leads a man
out of the darkness of the wrong path and puts him in the light of the
straight path. In this way, God has arranged for the guidance of man
through His messengers.
But, it is possible for God’s guidebook to provide guidance in the real
sense only when a man is anxious about his fate in the Hereafter. This
anxiety makes him so serious that he attaches more importance to
Truth and righteousness than to any other thing.
The Books Mentioned in the Quran
Of the holy books, four find mention in the Quran: the Sahifa, scrolls
given to Abraham; the Tawrat, the revelations made to Moses;
the Zabur, the Psalms given to David; the Injil, the teachings given to
Jesus. It is a belief of a Muslim that each of these (as well as every other
Book sent by God to His Prophets) was originally a complete revelation.
However, for a variety of reasons, most of these revealed books sent
by God could not be preserved. For instance, the Quran mentions the
scriptures given to Abraham ( 87: 19 ) as Sahifa, but these are no longer
in existence and are lost completely. Others were changed in various
ways by human intervention.
Historians agree that the Quran, the last of the divine books has been
preserved from human interpolation.
The Torah
The term Towrah is simply the Arabic equivalent for the Hebrew Torah,
and normally understood as ‘The Law’ given by God to the Prophet Moses. The Quran gives abundant testimony to the Towrah, and it is
mentioned more than any other revealed book. Sometimes it is simply
called ‘The Law’.
‘We have revealed the Torah, in which there is guidance and light. By
it the prophets who were obedient to Us judged the Jews, and so did
the rabbis and the priests, according to God’s Book which had been
entrusted to their care; and to which they were witnesses. Have no fear
of man; fear Me, and do not sell My revelations for a paltry sum. Those
who do not judge by what God has sent down are deniers of truth.
We prescribed for them in [the Torah]: a life for a life, an eye for an eye,
a nose for a nose, an ear for an ear, a tooth for a tooth, and a wound
for a wound. But, if anyone forgoes it, this shall be for him an expiation.
Those who do not judge by what God has sent
down are wrongdoers! ( 5: 44-45 ).
The Quran, the Book
of God, enshrines
teachings, which
were basically the
same as were to be
found in previously
revealed scriptures.
From these verses, it can be seen that the
Quran calling the Torah a book of ‘guidance
and light’ testifies that God had revealed it as
the Law for the Jews.
Sometimes in the Quran, the name Towrah
refers not only to the books of the Prophet
Moses, but to the entire Hebrew scripture
of the Jews, especially in the verses, which
mention the Towrah and Injil together. ‘He has
revealed unto you (Muhammad) the scripture with truth, confirming
that which was (revealed) before it, even as He revealed the Torah and
the Injil.’ ( 3: 3 ).
When the Quran uses the expression ‘People of the Book’, it always
means all the three communities: the Jews, the Christians, and the
Muslims: People of the Book, why do you dispute about Abraham when
the Torah and Gospel were only sent down after him. Do you not use
your reason? ( 3: 65 )
According to the Quran, the Towrah, the book that God revealed to
Moses for the guidance of the Children of Israel (Bani Israil), did in
fact contain guidance and God’s commands, admonition and a clear
explanation of many things of the world, and of God’s mercy. There
are many verses regarding the granting of a book to Moses in which
the Towrah is mentioned although not by name. The tablets (alwah) are
also mentioned and they mean the same scripture:
‘And We wrote for him upon the Tablets an admonition and details
of all things, then [bade him], ‘Hold fast to them; and command your
people to follow them in their best sense’. ( 7: 145 )
But when Moses went back to his people with the Law inscribed on the
Tablets, they had meanwhile turned away from God and the Truth and
he became very angry. He prayed for them and they repented. ‘When
his anger had subsided, Moses took up the Tablets upon which was
inscribed a pledge of guidance and mercy for
those who fear their Lord.’ ( 7: 150-154 ).
Historians agree that
the Quran, the last of
the divine books has
been preserved from
human interpolation.
The Towrah, as originally revealed to Moses,
must have been in the Hebrew language. But
there is no copy of the original Book given
to Moses extant today. As a matter of fact,
during their long and turbulent history, the
Jews repeatedly lost their revealed books. The
Old Testament is considered by today’s Jews
as the Book revealed by God. But it cannot
simply be equated with the Towrah mentioned
in the Quran. The reason for this is the Old Testament contains also
the Zabur, (Psalms) the book of guidance given to the Prophet David.
The Zabur is mentioned in the Quran as a revelation separate from the
Towrah.
The Zabur (Psalms)
The term Zabur is the Arabic equivalent of the Hebrew word ‘zimr’, which
is usually translated into English as ‘Psalm’. It was the book of revelation
given to the Prophet David. In the Hebrew and Christian scriptures it
is a part of the Old Testament. David was a prophet, but he was also a
great ruler. He was divinely inspired to sing hymns praising God and
His creation in his melodious and sonorous voice. These hymns now
constitute the Psalms.
In the Quran, the Psalms is mentioned by name only three times:
‘…And to David We gave the Psalms.’ ( 4: 163 )
‘'Your Lord knows best about everyone in the heavens and on the
earth. We gave some prophets more than others: We gave David the
Psalms." ( 17: 55 )
'We have already written in the Psalms following the Reminder, 'My
righteous servants shall inherit the earth.' ( 21: 105 )
Thus the Quran, and also the Hadith, very clearly confirm the Muslim
belief in four heavenly books. The Quran mentions no other such
heavenly books, though it mentions many prophets, some of them by
name, and attributes many divine revelations to them.
David, to whom God revealed the Psalms, was gifted with great
eloquence and a beautiful voice. All gifts were given to the prophets
according to the needs of the world and the times in which they lived.
The Psalms were intended to be sung for the worship of God and the
celebration of God’s greatness.
The Psalms are still extant and have been incorporated into the Bible.
However, their present form may possibly be different from the original.
Nonetheless, to a great extent, the Psalms retain their original state.
The Injil (Gospel)
The Injil is the revelation given to Prophet Jesus. The term Injil is derived
from a Greek word, which, when translated into English means ‘gospel’
and it occurs twelve times in the Quran.
In Muslim belief Jesus, the son of Mary, is considered to be the Prophet
immediately preceding the Prophet of Islam. His birth was miraculous
and by the grace of God he was endowed with a life-giving spirit. Both
he and his pious mother, Mary, are mentioned in the Quran many
times.
‘We sent after them 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.’ ( 57: 27 )
This particular verse of the Quran very clearly states that the Prophet
Jesus was given the real Gospel, which stressed the compassion
and mercy of God. Most of the time, whenever mentioned in the
Quran, Gospel is coupled with the Torah or the law given to Moses.
But there is always emphasis on the continuity of revelation and its
culmination with the final revelation that is the Quran.
'He has sent down the Book to you with truth, which fulfils (the
predictions) in the Scriptures that preceded it: He sent down the
Torah and the Gospel.' ( 3: 3 )
'God will instruct him in the Book and in wisdom and in the
Torah and in the Gospel.' ( 3: 48 )
The Injil mentioned in the Quran is the book revealed to the Prophet
Jesus. The Gospel of the Christians is a compilation made one
hundred years after the prophethood of Jesus, and was written down
in Greek. Besides the Gospels attributed to the four apostles (John,
Luke, Mark, and Matthew), it contains letters of Paul and Peter to the
early Christian communities, as well as other
written material. That is why the Quran and
the Hadith often refer to changes made in the
original scriptures. All heavenly books were
sent by God for the guidance of humankind
and to enable their adherents to judge all
issues according to the divine laws as set
forth in these Books.
The Quran is a sacred
book sent by the Lord
of all creation. It is a
book for all human
beings, because it
has been sent by that
Divine Being who is
God of all of us.
The Quran
The Quran, the Book of God, enshrines
teachings, which were basically the same
as were to be found in previously revealed scriptures. But these
ancient scriptures are no longer preserved in their original state. Later
additions and deletions were made, whereas the Quran is preserved in
its original state.
The Quran has 114 chapters. Its contents in a nutshell are: belief in
one God, and considering oneself answerable to Him; firm belief that
the Prophet Muhammad is the messenger of God who conveyed the
message and that man’s eternal salvation rests thereon.
The position of the Quran is not just that it is one of the many revealed
scriptures but that it is the authentic divine Book. When a believer in
the previous revealed scripture turns to the Quran, it does not mean
that he is rejecting his own belief, but rather amounts to his having rediscovered his own faith.
The Quran is a sacred book sent by the Lord of all creation. It is a book
for all human beings, because it has been sent by that Divine Being
who is God of all of us.
The Quran is no new heavenly scripture. It is only an authentic edition
of the previous heavenly scriptures. In this respect, the Quran is a book
for all human beings, of all nations. It is the expression of God’s mercy
for one and for all. It is a complete message sent by God for every one
of us.
According to the Quran, Islam means submission. The religion of Islam
is so named because it is based on obedience to God. A true believer in
Islam is one who subordinates his thinking to God, who follows God’s
dictates in all aspects of his life.
Islam is the religion of the entire universe, for the entire universe and
all its parts are functioning in accordance with the law laid down by
God.
Such behaviour is also desired of man. Man should also lead his life as
God’s obedient servant just as the rest of the universe is fully subservient
to God. The only difference is that the universe has submitted to God
compulsorily, while man is required to submit to the will of God by his
own choice.
When man adopts Islam, first of all it is his thinking which is affected by
Islam, then his desires, his feelings, his interests, his relations, his love
and his hatred. All are coloured by his obedience to God’s will.
When man, in his daily life comes under God’s command, his behaviour
with people and his dealings are all moulded by the demands of Islam.
From inside to outside he becomes a person devoted to God.
Man, as the Quran tells us, is God’s servant. Indeed, the only proper
way for man to live in this world is to live as the servant of God. Islam, in
fact, is another name for this life of servitude to God. Where the Islamic
life is devoted to the service of God, the un-Islamic life unashamedly
flouts the will of God. Islam teaches man to lead an obedient life and
surrender himself completely to the will of God. It is those people who
do so will share God’s blessings in the next world. This is the essence
of the teachings of the Quran.
